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LI  BR  AR  Y 

OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY   OF   CALIFORNIA. 

GIFT    ©K 

Received „*^»dfc2_.* ,  188^. 

Accessions  No.^S/?^*        Shelf  No. 

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With   Compliments, 

WARRMG  WILKINSON, 

Principal. 


PROCEEDINGS 


THE   DEAR 


HELD  AT  BERKELEY,  CALIFORNIA, 


July   15-22,   1886. 


SACRAMENTO: 
STATE  OFFICE    :    :    :    :   P.  L.    SHOAFF,  supt.   state  printing. 

1887. 


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1hcy<) 


PROCEEDINGS. 


FIRST   DAY. 

Thursday,  July  15,  1886. 

The  Eleventh  National  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the 
Deaf  and  Dumb  convened  at  Berkeley,  California,  July  15,  1886,  at 
ten  o'clock  a.  m.,  in  the  chapel  of  the  California  Institution. 

President  E.  M.  Gallaudet,  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Executive 
Committee,  called  the  meeting  to  order,  and  said : 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  it  becomes  my  duty  as  Chairman  of  the 
Standing  Executive  Committee  of  the  Convention  of  American  In- 
structors of  Deaf  Mutes  to  announce  that  the  time  mentioned  in  the 
call  for  the  eleventh  convention  at  which  the  convention  should 
assemble  has  arrived.  It  is  with  no  little  pleasure  that  I  perform 
this  duty  of  calling  together  this  eleventh  convention  of  the  Ameri- 
can Instructors  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb;  and  before  reading  portions 
of  the  call  for  this  convention,  I  will,  as  has  been  suggested  to  me  by 
some  friends  to  be  desirable  to  do,  make  a  brief  statement  as  to  what 
this  convention  is  and  what  it  has  been  in  the  past;  what  we  have  in 
the  history  of  the  past  to  give  us  what  may  be  called  an  historical 
consciousness  that  we  may  begin  our  work  here  with  a  thought  of 
what  has  gone  before  us,  and  what  it  is  in  the  past  that  we  now  repre- 
sent and  carry  forward  into  the  future. 

The  first  convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf  was  held 
at  the  Institution  for  Deaf  Mutes,  in  the  City  of  New  York,  in  the 
year  1850.  There  were  at  that  institution  six  schools  only  represented, 
and  but  thirty-five  delegates  present. 

The  second  convention  was  held  at  Hartford,  Connecticut,  the  seat 
of  the  first  Institution  for  Deaf  Mutes,  in  the  year  following,  in  1851, 
and  there  were  present  at  that  meeting  thirty-three  delegates,  repre- 
senting only  three  schools. 

The  third  convention  was  held  at  the  institution  in  Columbus, 
Ohio,  in  1853,  and  there  were  at  that  convention  six  schools  repre- 
sented by  thirty-five  teachers. 

The  fourth  convention  was  held  at  Staunton,  Virginia,  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1856,  at  the  Institution  for  the  Deaf  in  the  State  of  Virginia, 
and  there  were  present  at  that  meeting  only  thirty-one  instructors, 
representing  nine  institutions. 

The  fifth  convention  was  held  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  in  1858,  at 
which  but  forty-four  delegates  represented  ten  schools. 

After  the  fifth  convention,  a  period  of  ten  years  passed  before  any 
other  convention  was  held.  There  were  circumstances  during  that 
period  which  led  to  an  interruption  of  the  meetings  of  the  conven- 
tion. But  in  1868  a  call  was  issued  from  the  college  at  Washington 
inviting  the  heads  of  the  institutions  to  assemble  therein  with  a  view 


4  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

of  resuming  these  conventions.  At  that  gathering  there  were  twenty- 
six  delegates  present,  mostly  heads  of  institutions,  representing  four- 
teen schools;  the  meetings  of  the  convention  being  thus  revived  at 
what  was  called  the  sixth  convention. 

The  seventh  was  held  at  Indianapolis,  in  1870,  twenty-four  schools 
being  represented  by  one  hundred  delegates. 

The  eighth  was  held  at  Belleville,  Province  of  Ontario,  in  1874, 
twenty-seven  schools  being  represented  by  one  hundred  and  forty- 
seven  delegates. 

The  ninth  was  held  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  in  1878,  thirty-four  schools 
being  represented  by  one  hundred  and  forty-seven  delegates. 

The  tenth  and  last  convention  was  held  at  Jacksonville,  111.,  in 
1882,  thirty-two  schools  being  represented  by  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
four  delegates.  That  convention  was  regarded  as  the  most  successful 
as  it  was  the  most  numerously  attended  of  any  convention  up  to  that 
time.  It  was  a  notable  gathering,  one  that  we  all  remember;  and  I 
recollect  as  one  present  upon  that  occasion  that  we  questioned  whether 
we  had  not  reached  the  summit  of  our  greatness  as  a  Convention  of 
American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb.  At  that  time  there  was 
talk  of  an  attempt  to  hold  a  convention  in  California.  Many  said  it 
would  be  exceedingly  pleasant  to  go,  but  it  was  doubted  whether 
enough  could  be  induced  to  go  to  make  it  worth  while  to  hold  a  con- 
vention in  this  State.  The  subject  was  under  consideration  somewhat 
at  that  time,  and  about  two  years  later  quite  formally,  but  the  matter 
was  postponed;  and  last  winter,  when  the  Executive  Committee  had 
before  it  the  very  courteous  and  warm  invitation  of  the  officers  of  this 
institution  to  meet  here  at  this  time,  there  was  even  then  some  doubt 
expressed  as  to  whether  it  was  expedient  to  attempt  to  hold  the  con- 
vention so  far  away  from  the  Eastern  States  as  the  Pacific  Coast  would 
be.  But  the  committee  decided,  without  consultation  outside  of  its 
own  body,  to  accept  this  kind  and  cordial  invitation,  and  to  hold  the 
convention  here.  Measures  were  then  taken,  as  the  most  of  you  are 
aware,  by  Mr.  Wilkinson,  with  the  cooperation  and  assistance  of  Dr. 
Gillett,  in  the  matter  of  transportation;  the  enthusiasm  grew,  the 
number  who  were  to  come  grew,  and  I  hardly  need  to  tell  you  now 
that  the  Eleventh  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf, 
meeting  here  in  Berkeley,  California,  represents  a  larger  number  of 
schools  than  has  ever  been  represented  in  any  convention.  [Ap- 
plause.] Forty-one  schools  are  known  to  be  represented  in  this 
convention,  and  probably  two  hundred  and  twenty-five  to  two  hun- 
dred and  thirty  delegates.  [Applause.]  So  our  western  friends,  if  I 
may  be  allowed  to  speak  as  from  the  East,  will  see  that  neither  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  nor  the  barren  American  desert,  nor  the  Sierra 
Nevada,  nor  the  matter  of  expense,  nor  anything  else,  has  stood  in 
the  way  of  our  earnest  desire  and  purpose  to  be  present  at  the  meet- 
ing of  this  convention.    [Applause.] 

I  will  read  some  extracts  from  the  call  for  the  convention,  as  it  is 
my  duty  to  do: 

National  Deaf  Mute  College,  Kendall  Green,  near  Washington,  D.  C, ) 

March  22,  1886.         j* 

At  the  Tenth  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  held  at  Jack- 
sonville, Illinois,  August  26-30,  1882,  the  following  resolution  was  adopted : 

Resolved,  That  all  invitations  for  the  next  convention  be  referred  to  the  standing  com- 
mittee, who  are  hereby  authorized  to  take  all  necessary  action  in  the  premises. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  committee,  held  in  New  York  December  10,  1885,  a  communication 
was  presented  from  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  California  Institution  for  the  Education 


OF  AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  5 

of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  and  the  Blind,  through  Mr.  Warring  Wilkinson,  Principal,  inviting 
the  convention  to  meet  in  Berkeley,  at  their  institution,  during  the  summer  of  1880. 

An  invitation  was  also  presented  from  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Iowa  Institution 
for  the  Education  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  through  Mr.  Henry  C.  Hammond,  Superintend- 
ent, offering  the  hospitalities  of  their  institution  to  the  convention. 

On  taking  the  sense  of  the  committee,  a  disposition  to  accept  the  invitation  to  Califor- 
nia proved  to  be  unanimous.  In  consideration  of  the  several  invitations  to  California 
which  had  come  before  the  committee  in  former  years,  and  which  they  had  felt  com- 
pelled to  decline,  it  was  with  especial  satisfaction  the  committee  recognized  the  fact  that 
nothing  now  stood  in  the  way  of  accepting  the  proffer  of  hospitality  so  generously- 
renewed,  and  of  which  very  many  members  of  the  profession  had  long  desired  to  avail 
themselves. 

Notice  is  accordingly  hereby  given  that  the  eleventh  convention  will  be  called  to  order 
in  the  California  Institution  on  Thursday,  the  fifteenth  day  of  July,  1886. 

Dr.  Gallaudet  then  suggested  that  the  Hon.  Erastus  Brooks,  of 
New  York,  well  and  favorably  known,  and  highly  honored  and  of 
great  prominence  in  that  State  as  the  founder  and  conductor  of  the 
New  York  Express,"  the  President  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
New  York  State  Institution,  be  invited  to  take  the  chair  as  the  tem- 
porary Chairman  of  the  convention.  This  suggestion  in  the  form  of 
a  motion  was  put  to  the  convention  and  carried;  and  the  Hon.  Eras- 
tus Brooks  was  escorted  to  the  chair  amidst  great  applause. 

Mr.  Brooks:  Ladies  and  Gentlemen,  Principals,  Teachers,  Super- 
intendents, and  friends  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  these  United  States  of 
America,  I  count  it  a  very  high  honor  to  be  permitted  to  preside  tem- 
porarily over  your  deliberations  to-day.  My  interest  in  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  deaf  and  dumb  extends  back  to  fully  thirty  years  ago,  when 
as  a  citizen  of  the  State  of  New  York,  in  the  Senate  of  that  State,  it 
was  my  privilege,  upon  the  earliest  petition  of  the  friends  of  the  deaf 
and  dumb  in  the  State,  to  do  something  for  the  relief  of  an  institu- 
tion which  at  that  time  was  covered,  I  may  say,  all  over  with  debt. 
The  debt  has  gone,  the  institution  is  free  from  obligations,  and  it 
opens  wide  its  arms  to  receive  all  who  need  its  instruction.  And  from 
the  one  institution  in  the  State  of  New  York  has  grown  seven  other 
institutions,  until,  from  Lake  Erie  to  the  Atlantic,  almost  every  home 
has  a  school  for  the  deaf  brought,  to  its  own  fireside.  Whenever  I 
have  an  opportunity,  I  take  great  pleasure  in  doing  honor  to  the  States 
of  this  Union  which  show  a  just  appreciation  of  those  who  need  the 
forms  of  instruction  which  are  extended  here.  We  open  wide  our 
gates  to  all  those  who  are  blessed  with  speech  and  with  hearing;  and 
in  the  providence  of  God,  and  in  the  natural  humanities  of  men,  it  is 
but  a  public  duty,  as  it  is  a  great  privilege,  to  extend  to  the  children 
of  the  land,  to  the  deaf  and  dumb,  privileges  in  common  with  those 
who  are  blest  with  speech  and  hearing.    [Applause.] 

Our  friend  who  called  this  meeting  to  order,  has  alluded  by  num- 
bers to  the  growth  of  the  institutions  of  the  country.  Now,  I  do  not 
like  to  consider  myself  a  very  old  man,  yet  I  am  older  in  years  than 
any  institution  in  the  United  States  of  America;  showing  how  great 
must  have  been  the  neglect  in  the  early  periods  of  the  history  of  the 
country  of  a  proper  appreciation  of  the  interests  of  this  class  of  unfor- 
tunate people. 

The  first  institution  was  established  in  1817;  the  second,  of  which 
I  have  the  honor  to  be  President,  was  established  but  a  year  later. 
And  from  that  time  to  the  present  year,  as  you  have  witnessed,  there 
have  been  established  over  forty  institutions  in  the  country;  and 
there  are,  as  near  as  I  can  find  out,  over  thirty-three  thousand  people 
in  this  country  who,  in  one  form  or  another,  either  as  citizens  or  as 
pupils,  are  interested  in  this  class  of  instruction.    And  in  a  country 


6  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

like  this  it  is  destiny,  or  to  use  a  more  proper  word,  it  is  in  the  provi- 
dence of  God  that  what  has  been  and  is  will  grow  and  enlarge  until 
every  child  afflicted  with  the  absence  of  these  blessings  which  some 
of  us  enjoy,  shall  have,  free  as  the  water  that  flows  or  the  sun  that 
shines,  the  blessings  of  this  kind  of  instruction.    [Applause.] 

It  is  now  my  privilege  for  the  first  time  to  be  in  this  State  of  Cali- 
fornia. I  can  say,  as  one  advanced  in  years,  it  was  a  journey  that  tires 
the  mind  and  wearies  the  body.  But  as  good  news  that  comes  from 
a  far  country,  as  cold  water  is  to  the  thirsty  soul,  so  is  our  welcome  to 
our  place  of  rest  here.  [Applause.]  I  have  seen  manifested  as  I  never 
anticipated  before,  the  growth  of  this  great  nation.  The  dozen  of 
States  that  some  of  us  have  passed  through,  the  representation  here 
to-day  of  every  institution  in  the  country  excepting  three,  shows  the 
power,  the  concentration  and  purpose  of  will,  and  general  interest  in 
an  occasion  like  the  present.  Many  of  us  have  come  here  from  a 
natural  curiosity  to  see  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  this  State,  which  has 
so  long  been  prosperous  upon  it.  Our  eyes  have  been  greeted  with 
foliage,  with  flowers,  with  a  bloom  and  beauty  that  certainly  I  never 
saw  before.  And  I  am  happy  to  know  and  believe  that,  in  the  growth 
of  this  nation,  it  is  not  place,  nor  States,  nor  long  distances,  whether 
in  the  State  of  Maine,  where  I  was  born,  or  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
where  I  lived  for  fifty  years  and  more,  or  here,  but  that  we  are  all 
of  one  country,  one  constitution,  one  destiny,  and  one  humanity. 
[Applause.] 

No  geographical  bounds  can  hereafter  separate  the  American  peo- 
ple. [Applause.]  And  it  is  pleasant  to  see  and  know,  and  most  of  all 
to  feel,  that,  whatever  may  be  our  conditions  in  life,  under  the  flag 
which  floats  over  our  heads  to-day  the  government  which  the  people 
represent,  and  of  which  we  are  a  part,  finds  faith,  prosperity,  and 
happiness  in  the  perpetuation  of  this  unity.     [Applause.] 

I  thank  you,  my  friends,  very  cordially  for  the  honor  of  presiding 
here  temporarily  to-day,  and  I  wish  you  godspeed  in  the  deliberations 
of  the  days  to  come.  I  await  the  further  order  of  this  convention. 
[Applause.] 

On  motion  of  Dr.  I.  L.  Peet,  of  New  York,  which  was  put  and  car- 
ried, it  was  declared  that  the  proceedings  of  this  body  be  governed 
by  the  ordinary  rules  of  parliamentary  practice. 

Mr.  D.  L.  Elmendorf  moved  that  a  committee  of  three  on  creden- 
tials and  the  enrollment  of  members  be  appointed.  The  motion  was 
put  and  carried  unanimously,  and  the  following  members  were  ap- 
pointed by  the  Chair:  D.  C.  Elmendorf,  of  New  York;  Willis  Hub- 
bard, of  Michigan,  and  W.  A.  Caldwell,  of  Pennsylvania. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  G.  O.  Fay  the  Chairman  recommended  a  com- 
mittee of  five  for  the  consideration  of  the  convention  as  permanent 
officers,  which  recommendation  was  duly  seconded  and  carried  unan- 
imously: G.  0.  Fay,  of  Connecticut;  W.  O.  Connor,  of  Georgia;  W.  S. 
Marshall,  of  Missouri;  G.  W.  Veditz,  of  Maryland;  Sister  Mary  Anne, 
of  Buffalo,  New  York — which  committee  retired  for  deliberation. 

Letters  of  regret  from  the  following  absentees  were  then  read  by 
Mr.  Wilkinson: 

Wisconsin  School  for  the  Deaf,  ) 
Delavan,  Wisconsin,  July  5, 1886.         / 

Superintendent  Warring  Wilkinson,  Berkeley,  California,  Institution  for  Deaf,  Dumb,  and 

Blind: 

Dear  Sir:  It  is  the  occasion  of  sincere  and  lasting  regret  on  my  part  that  I  am  unable 
to  accept  the  generous  hospitality  of  your  institution  and  participate  in  the  profit  and 
pleasure  of  the  convention. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  7 

My  thoughts  and  best  wishes  attend  the  deliberations  of  the  convention,  and  I  have  no 
doubt  that  much  practical  truth  and  knowledge  will  be  elicited.  I  trust  that  the  subject 
of  articulation  as  a  branch  of  our  institution  work  will  receive  its  share  of  attention,  and 
have  no  doubt  that  the  oral  branch  of  our  institution  work  is  deserving  of  more  careful 
attention  than  it  usually  receives. 
With  fraternal  greetings  to  all,  I  have  the  honor  to  remain, 
Sincerely  yours, 

JOHN  W.  SWILER, 

Delavan,  Wis. 

Alabama  Institution  Deaf,  Dumb,  and  Blind,  ) 
Talladega,  Alabama,  July  4,  1886.         ) 

Professor  W.  Wilkinson,  Principal  California  Institution  Deaf,  Dumb,  and  Blind: 

My  Dear  Sir:  I  regret  exceedingly  that  I  am  not  able  to  be  with  you  at  the  convoca- 
tion. No  little  matter  would  keep  me  away.  Until  two  days  ago  I  thought  our  institution 
would  be  represented  by  at  least  two  of  our  teachers,  but  for  some  reason  I  understand 
they  have  concluded  not  to  go.  I  regret  it.  Please  convey  to  the  ladies  and  gentlemen 
who  are  so  fortunate  as  to  be  with  you  my  warmest  and  kindest  regards,  and  best  wishes 
that  the  occasion  may  be  most  enjoyable,  as  I  know  it  will  be  profitable.  For  yourself 
and  family  accept  the  assurance  of  my  high  esteem. 
Very  trulv,  your  obedient  servant, 

J.  H.  JOHNSON, 

Principal. 

Boulder,  Colorado,  May  3,  1886. 
Mr.  Wilkinson  : 

Dear  Sir:  Your  very  kind  letter  reached  here  the  twenty-eighth  ultimo,  and  I  would 
have  replied  at  once  had  I  not  daily  expected  advice  from  my  physician  which  would 
probably  settle  the  matter  of  my  going  to  California.  His  letter  came  this  morning, 
and  I  find  he  is  not  willing  to  assume  the  responsibility  of  my  going.  I  do  not  like 
to  take  the  matter  into  my  own  hands,  as  I  am  unwilling  to  do  anything  that  might 
hinder  my  recovery,  and  so,  perhaps,  prevent  my  returning  to  my  work  in  the  autumn. 

Until  recently,  I  have  been  very  hopeful  that  Miss  C.  A.  Yale,  our  Associate  Principal, 
would  attend  the  convention,  but  it  is  now  quite  settled  that  she  cannot. 

I  hear  from  the  institution  that  Miss  Sparrow,  one  of  our  teachers,  and  Miss  Cowles, 
an  attendant,  are  intending  to  go  to  California  to  join  the  convention.  I  will  ask  Miss 
Yale  to  write  you  whether  they  have  friends  with  whom  they  will  stay,  or  whether  they 
will  accept  your  kind  hospitalities. 

I  regret  very  much  that  Miss  Yale  cannot  go  to  represent  our  institution.  I  am  very 
sorry  not  to  meet  our  fellow  laborers  in  council,  and  not  to  see  your  wonderful  country, 
but  it  does  not  seem  best  that  I  should  do  so  now. 

Accept  many  thanks  for  your  very  cordial  invitation,  and  believe  me, 
Most  truly  yours, 

H.  B.  ROGERS. 

Institution  for  the  Instruction  of  the  Blind,  ) 
North  Boundary  Avenue,  Baltimore,  May  12, 1886.        j 
My  Dear  Wilkinson  : 

I  have  postponed  writing  to  you  this  long,  hoping  that  circumstances  might  possibly  so 
shape  themselves  that  I  would  be  able  to  accept  your  kind  invitation  to  visit  the  Pacific 
Coast  this  summer,  but  the  longer  I  wait  the  worse  they  get,  so  I  have  at  last  decided, 
most  reluctantly,  to  give  up  all  hope  of  being  one  of  the  party  who  will  enjoy  your  hospi- 
tality. The  educators  of  the  blind  will  meet  in  New  York  early  in  July,  and,  of  course,  I 
am  expected  to  be  present.  In  addition,  we  shall  have  to  build  for  our  colored  school,  and 
I  shall  have  to  make  some  extensive  repairs  at  home  which  will  require  my  supervision. 
I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  I  regret  my  inability  to  journey  westward  this  summer.  I 
feel  that  I  may  never  again  have  such  an  opportunity  to  visit  you,  unless  you  should 
some  day  decide  to  invite  us  blind  folks  to  hold  a  convention  at  your  institution.  I  had 
hoped  to  see  you  in  New  York  this  summer.  I  believe  you  have  attended  but  two  of  our 
conventions,  Boston  and  Philadelphia.  Of  course  when  I  cherished  the  hope  of  having 
you  with  us,  I  did  not  know  that  you  were  going  to  have  a  convention  at  your  institu- 
tion. 

Regretting  that  I  shall  not  be  one  of  your  fortunate  guests,  and  with  respects  to  Mrs. 
Wilkinson,  I  am, 

Very  truly  yours, 

F.  D.  MORRISON. 

Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  ) 
Jackson,  Mississippi,  June  28, 1886.         ) 
Warring  Wilkinson,  Esq.,  Berkeley,  California: 

Dear  Sir:  Yours  of  May  twentieth  is  to  hand.  I  am  sorry  to  say  I  cannot  attend  the 
convention.    I  have  been  looking  forward  to  this  pleasure  for  years,  but  I  find  1  will  have 


8  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

to  forego  it,  and  am  trying  to  take  it  like  a  philosopher.    I  expected  when  the  convention 
was  called,  to  go,  but  1  find  it  out  of  my  power  now.    None  of  our  teachers  can  go,  and 
we  will  have  to  be  without  a  representative.    I  would  be  glad  to  know  you  personally,  and 
visit  your  institution,  but  must  reserve  those  pleasures  for  some  future  time. 
Hoping  you  may  have  a  pleasant  and  profitable  convention,  I  am, 
Yours  truly, 

J.  R.  DOBYNS. 

Institution  for  the  Improved  Instruction  of  Deaf  Mutes,  ^ 
Lexington  Avenue,  between  Sixty-Seventh  and  Sixty-eighth  Streets,     S. 

New  York,  April  26,  1886.        j 
Mr.  W.  Wilkinson,  Principal,  etc.: 

Dear  Sir:  Yours  of  the  eighth  instant  is  received.  I  have  sent  you  all  our  reports  that 
you  asked  for,  except  the  second,  which  is  out  of  print. 

In  answer  to  your  question,  I  desire  to  say  that  this  institution  will  not  be  represented 
at  the  coming  convention.    But  I  hope  and  wish  that  the  gathering  may  prove  agreeable 
to  those  who  will  attend  it,  and  that  it  may  result  in  a  great  deal  of  good  to  our  cause. 
Yours  truly, 

D.  GREENBERGER. 

New  Mexico  School  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  ) 
Santa  Fe,  New  Mexico,  July  8, 1886.         j 
Professor  W.  Wilkinson,  Berkeley,  California: 

Dear  Sir:  Owing  to  present  circumstances,  I  regret  my  inability  to  come  and  attend 
your  coming  convention.    With  best  wishes  for  the  success  of  the  convention,  I  am, 
Yours,  very  respectfully, 

LARS  M.  LARSON,  Principal. 

Asylum  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  ) 
Victoria  Road,  Margate,  Kent,  June  3,  1886.         J 
Br.  Gillett: 

Dear  Sir:  Allow  me  to  thank  you  most  heartily  for  your  very  kind  invitation  to  me  to 
take  part  in  the  forthcoming  convention  in  California,  and  to  express  my  extreme  regret 
that  circumstances  do  not  allow  me  to  accept  it. 

As  a  teacher,  nothing  would  give  me  greater  pleasure  than  to  witness,  for  myself,  the 
great  things  that  are  done  among  you  for  the  deaf  mute,  and  to  meet  and  take  counsel 
with  those  who  so  enthusiastically  and  successfully  work  for  him.  In  addition  I  very 
much  desire  to  see  for  myself  something  of  your  great  country,  which  none  of  us  here 
look  upon  as  a  foreign  one.  We  regard  you  rather  with  the  feeling  with  which  a  parent 
looks  upon  a  grown  up  child,  gone  forth  on  an  assured  and  splendid  career,  whom  he  has 
taught  many  things,  and  who  in  many  others  has  improved  upon  his  teaching.  And  in 
the  present  case,  in  our  own  particular  work,  you  have  gone,  as  I  believe,  far  ahead  of  us; 
but  the  parent  is  not  yet  decrepit,  even  if  she  be  old,  and  may  yet  run  side  by  side  with 
you  in  the  glorious  work  of  ameliorating  the  immense  disadvantages  which  arise  from 
deafness.  In  another  particular,  too,  according  to  your  kind  letter,  you  have  far  exceeded 
the  example  we  set  you,  for  while  we  are  content  with  one  Queen— and  a  right  good  one 
she  is — "everybody,"  you  say,  "is  a  king  or  a  queen  over  here."  What  a  monarchy  yours 
must  be !  Thanks  very  much  for  the  royal  republican  welcome  you  offer.  I  wish  I  could 
accept  it. 

The  programme  of  your  journey,  too,  makes  one  dissatisfied  and  disappointed  not  to 
be  able  to  share  in  so  splendid  a  trip. 

I  can  only  add  my  earnest  hope  that  the  convention  may  be  a  highly  successful  one, 
fraught  with  success  in  the  elucidation  of  the  many  problems  our  common  work  pre- 
sents, and  a  pleasant  and  happy  holiday  for  all  those  who  participate  in  it. 
Very  truly  yours, 

RICHARD  ELLIOTT. 

Guion  Mail  Steamer  Alaska,  June  27,  1886. 
My  Bear  Mr.  Wilkinson: 

1  am  very  sorry  not  to  be  with  you  all  in  convention  assembled,  but  affairs  of  a  personal 
interest  seemed  rather  to  have  called  me  this  way.  We  are  now  approaching  Queens- 
town,  and  with  my  best  wishes  for  a  successful  convention,  and  kind  remembrances  to  all 
friends,  I  am, 

Fraternally  yours, 

E.  B.  NELSON, 
Principal  Central  New  York  Institute  for  Deaf  Mutes,  Rome,  N.  Y. 


[ON") 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF. 

South  Carolina  Institution  fob  the  Education 

of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  and  the  Blind, 
Cedar  Spring,  South  Carolina,  July  7,  1886. 

Mr.  W.  Wilkinson,  Berkeley,  California: 

My  Dear  Sir:  It  has  been  a  great  disappointment  to  me  to  be  obliged  to  give  up  my 
long  and  fondly  anticipated  trip  to  your  great  State,  and  not  to  be  able  to  participate  in 
the  work  of  the  convention.  Our  Mr.  Rogers  will  be  with  you  and  will  represent  our 
State  and  school. 

Please  present  my  love  to  the  members  of  the  convention,  with  the  assurance  that  I 
shall  be  with  them  continually  in  thought  and  desire  for  harmony  and  success. 
Yours,  very  truly, 

N.F.WALKER. 

West  Virginia  Institution  for  Deaf  Mutes  and  the  Blind,  ) 
Romney,  West  Virginia,  June  24, 1886.         ) 
Dr.  Philip  G.  Gillett: 

My  Dear  Sir:  1  find  at  the  eleventh  hour,  to  my  deep  regret,  that  I  shall  not  be  per- 
mitted to  join  the  grand  expedition  to  California,  so  skillfully  planned  and  arranged  by 
you,  at  the  cost  of  so  great  labor  and  painstaking  on  your  part,  on  account  of  recent 
affliction  in  our  family,  at  the  same  time  doubting  whether  I  could  stand  the  trip,  if  free 
to  go.  I  shall  always  regret  the  loss  of  this  opportunity,  not  only  of  not  journeying  to 
the  land  of  the  "  setting  sun,"  in  company  with  old  associates  in  our  life's  work,  and 
others  whom  I  desire  to  know,  but  above" all,  of  not  being  present  to  participate  in  the 
proceedings  of  so  important  a  convention. 

Remember  me  most  kindly  to  Mr.  Wilkinson,  and  express  these  regrets  to  him  and  all 
of  our  profession. 

Very  truly  yours, 

JNO.  C.  COVELL. 

National  College  for  the  Deaf,  ) 
Washington,  D.  C,  July  8,  1886.         j 
Mr.  Warring  Wilkinson,  Principal  California  Institute: 

My  Dear  Sir:  Will  you  please  say  for  me  to  the  transcontinental  convention,  assem- 
bled within  your  hospitable  walls,  that  I  regret  deeply  my  inability  to  be  present  at  an 
assemblage  which,  by  virtue  of  numbers,  intelligence,  experience,  and  enthusiasm,  gives 
promise  of  great  helpfulness  to  its  members,  and  of  increased  efficiency  to  every  depart- 
ment of  the  arduous  and  ever  growing,  yet,  upon  the  whole,  delightful  work  to  which  so 
many  have  consecrated  their  lives. 

While  congratulating  those  present  upon  these  "red  letter"  days,  I  feel  that  nothing 
short  of  a  personal  apology,  from  stay-at-homes,  like  myself,  is  due  to  Dr.  Gillett,  who  has 
made  mole  hills  of  mountains.    And  now  will  you  not  whisper  in  our  magician's  ear 
dreams  of,  say,  London  or  Paris  as  the  seat  of  the  next  convention ! 
With  personal  regards  for  yourself,  I  remain, 
Yours,  truly, 

J.  C.  GORDON. 

Mr.  Job  Williams,  of  Hartford,  also  presented  a  verbal  message 
from  W.  W.  Turner,  of  Hartford,  Connecticut,  eighty-six  years  of  age. 

The  Chairman  (Mr.  Brooks):  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  before  the 
report  as  to  permanent  organization  is  received,  as  it  is  not  yet  ready, 
I  will  make  a  single  remark,  to  show  the  growth  of  the  country  in 
some  respects. 

It  was  just  one  year  ago  this  day,  July  15,  1885,  that  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  presiding  over  a  convention  held  at  Niagara  Falls  to  com- 
memorate an  event  in  which  every  citizen  of  the  Unted  States  has  an 
interest — that  from  July,  1885,  and  forever  thereafter,  the  Falls  of 
Niagara  are  free  to  the  people  of  the  United  States,  by  the  payment 
of  a  million  and  a  half  of  dollars  for  the  purchase  of  that  privilege 
from  those  who  owned  the  territory  and  the  water  front  there.  And 
I  am  reminded  of  that  event  by  the  suggestion  which  has  been  made 
in  the  letter  from  Mr.  Elliott,  that  hereafter,  in  his  own  good  time, 
and  with  just  consideration  for  the  taste  and  desires  of  those  inter- 
ested in  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  the  country  at  large,  some  convention 
be  held  upon  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic,  where  all  who  are  inter- 
ested in  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  the  United  States  may  meet  their 


10  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

friends  abroad.  Whether  or  not  that  event  will  ever  happen,  I  know 
not;  but  the  letter  which  has  just  been  read  from  our  friend  in  Lon- 
don, manifesting  an  interest  in  this  work  and  in  this  convention, 
shows  that,  though  we  may  be  as  wide  as  the  poles  apart,  we  are 
really  of  one  heart,  one  mind,  and  one  purpose,  in  the  desire  to 
secure  the  greatest  good  of  the  greatest  number  of  people  all  over  the 
earth.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  I.  N.  Tate,  of  Missouri,  stated  that  W.  D.  Kerr,  of  that  State, 
seventy-eight  years  old,  intended  until  a  few  days  before  starting  to 
have  been  here,  but  was  unable  to  attend,  which  accounted  for  his 
not  sending  a  letter  of  declination. 

The  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Nominations  then  read  the 
following  report  of  that  committee,  recommending  the  following  per- 
manent officers: 

President,  Philip  L.  Gillett,  LL.D.,  of  Illinois.  Vice-Presidents— Professor  Samuel  Porter, 
of  Washington,  D.  C;  Dr.  W.  H.  Latham,  of  Indiana;  J.  A.  Gillespie,  of  Nebraska;  D.  C. 
Dudley,  of  Colorado;  T.  L.  Moses,  of  Tennessee;  R.  Mathison.  of  Ontario;  Miss  Anna  M. 
Black,  of  Rhode  Island.  Secretaries— H.  C.  Hammond,  of  Iowa;  Theophilus  D'Estrella, 
of  California;  and  A.  S.  Clark,  of  Connecticut. 

The  report  was  unanimously  adopted. 

The  President-elect,  Philip  L.  Gillett,  was  then  conducted  to  the 
chair  amid  great  applause,  and  addressed  the  convention  as  follows: 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen,  Fellow  Citizens,  Brethren,  Sisters, 
and  Fathers:  It  is  with  no  slight  emotion  that  I  thank  you  for  the 
great  honor  that  you  confer  upon  me  in  calling  me  to  this  position. 
And  I  trust  you  will  understand  that  1  say  "  please  accept  my  thanks," 
not  because  it  is  customary,  but  because  I  regard  this  as  the  highest 
honor  to  which  I  could  aspire,  an  honor  to  which  I  have  not  dared  to 
aspire.  I  have  felt  it  a  sufficient  honor  to  have  tried  for  a  few  days 
or  weeks  past  to  contribute  to  the  comfort  and  the  pleasure  of  the 
members  of  the  convention,  and  to  serve  them  as  best  I  might  be 
able  in  a  very  humble  capacity.     [Applause.] 

We  are  here,  my  friends,  for  work.  While  to  many  it  may  have 
appeared  that  we  were  upon  a  pleasure  excursion,  yet  we  are  engaged 
in  a  great  and  a  grand  work.  We  are  here  as  workers  in  a  great  cause; 
to  inquire  and  to  learn  how  we  may  work  more  effectively  than  we 
have  been  able  to  do  thus  far.  We  are  here  a  cosmopolitan  gather- 
ing, so  to  speak;  not  only  from  this  country  of  ours,  but  from  our 
neighbors  upon  the  north,  in  the  Dominion  of  Canada,  and  I  think 
that  we  shall  in  a  few  days  clasp  the  hand  of  one  who  will  come  to 
us  from  across  the  Pacific.  We  are  here  from  the  Blue  Ridge,  the 
Alleghanies,  the  Rockies,  and  the  Sierras;  we  are  here  from  the  St. 
Lawrence,  the  St.  John  on  the  northeast  and  the  St.  John  in  the 
southeast;  from  the  Rio  Grande  in  the  southwest,  and  from  "where 
rolls  the  Oregon,  and  hears  no  sound  save  its  own  dashings."  And 
as  we  are  thus  gathered  from  all  over  this  country  with  reference  to 
one  purpose  and  one  aim,  so  we  are  here  wedded  to  no  particular 
method,  ready  to  grasp  and  avail  ourselves  of  anything  that  is  new, 
and  ready  to  surrender  anything  that  is  old,  when  a  better  is  pre- 
sented. [Applause.]  But  never  to  give  up  that  which  is  good  until 
we  get  the  better.     [Applause.] 

We  are  living  and  dwelling  in  a  grand,  an  awful  time;  "In  an  age 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  11 

on  ages  telling,  to  be  living  is  sublime."  In  such  an  age  are  we  liv- 
ing, and  in  such  work  are  we  engaged. 

The  Chairman  of  the  committee  has  referred  to  the  growth  of  this 
convention.  That  is  something  in  which  he  may  take  very  great 
pride;  wherein  we  may  rejoice.  But  I  rejoice  far  more  in  the  fact 
that  this  growth  of  the  convention  is  but  an  exponent  of  the  great 
moral  humanitarian  sentiment  that  exists  and  pervades  this  land  of 
ours.    [Applause.] 

We  are  here  to  equip  ourselves  better  for  the  work  that  lies  before 
us,  and  that  has  been  committed  to  us.  We  all,  in  a  measure,  sustain 
the  relation  of  trustees;  for  certain  purposes  we  are  the  trustees  of  the 
people  of  this  great  continent.  And  while  the  pecuniary  or  money 
view  is  not  the  highest  in  which  to  regard  questions  of  this  kind;  yet 
very  often  the  pecuniary  and  the  money  view  is  the  sentiment  and 
principle  that  animates  the  best  of  the  people  when  they  pour  out 
their  money  by  millions.  More  than  ten  millions  of  the  money  of  the 
people  of  this  country  are  represented  here  this  morning  by  the  dele- 
gates, members  of  this  convention.  It  is  a  great  trust  that  has  been 
committed  to  us  by  this  grand,  this  noble,  and  this  humanitarian 
people,  and  I  think  that  it  is  in  recognition  of  this  trust,  and  under  a 
sense  of  duty  that  we  are  assembled  here  this  morning  upon  the  west- 
ern border  of  our  land  of  flowers,  of  beauty,  and  of  brightness.  We 
have  enjoyed  our  journeying,  and  threading  our  ways  through  the 
mountains  and  across  deserts;  and  we  have  landed  in  this  paradise. 
We  have  found  already  in  a  good  measure  that  for  which  we  came 
West.  We  had  scarcely  set  our  feet  upon  this  beautiful  State;  had 
scarcely  looked  upon  these  structures  that  stand  here  in  their  stability 
and  beauty,  before  every  one  felt  that  we  had  learned  a  lesson  that  we 
might  weli  carry  back  to  our  homes,  to  our  people,  and  to  our  pupils. 
[Applause.] 

But  I  must  not  consume  time  in  talking  longer.  I  would  gladly 
give  you  many  promises  as  Chairman  of  this  convention ;  but  you 
will  certainly  be  better  satisfied  with  performance;  and  while  I  will 
try  to  do  the  best  I  can,  I  shall  be  under  the  necessity  of  asking  your 
charity  and  your  assistance  in  this  responsible  position.  The  con- 
vention is  now  ready  for  business.    [Applause.] 

The  following  committee  was  then  appointed  on  Order  of  Business: 
A.  L.  E.  Crouter,  of  Pennsylvania;  C.  W.  Ely,  of  Maryland;  S.  T. 
Walker,  of  Kansas;  J.  B.  Hotchkiss,  of  Washington,  D.  C;  Miss  J.  A. 
Shrom,  of  West  Pennsylvania. 

Mr.  Erastus  Brooks  made  a  motion  that  the  time  occupied  in 
the  reading  of  any  one  paper  shall  not  exceed  fifteen  minutes. 

Mr.  Gallaudet  moved  to  amend  so  as  to  have  the  matter  referred 
to  the  business  committee  for  their  consideration. 

Mr.  Brooks  also  made  it  part  of  his  motion  that  the  discussion  of 
papers  be  limited  to  five  minutes  for  each  member  who  desires  to 
speak. 

Mr.  G.  0.  Fay  desired  to  amend  further  by  making  it  ten  minutes. 

The  second  amendment  being  put  to  vote  was  adopted,  limiting  the 
discussion  to  ten  minutes.  The  motion  to  refer  to  the  business  com- 
mittee was  carried. 

The  Chair  then  nominated  as  interpreters  for  the  deaf  mutes  Rev. 
Thos.  Gallaudet,  F.  W.  Booth,  and  W.  K.  Argo,  and  upon  motion 
they  were  unanimously  chosen. 


12  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Mr.  Wilkinson  then  extended  to  the  convention  an  invitation  to 
take  an  excursion  around  the  bay  on  Saturday  next. 

Dr.  Peet,  of  New  York,  moved  that  Mr.  Wilkinson  be  made  a  com- 
mittee of  invitation  to  invite  to  the  sessions  of  the  convention,  ladies 
and  gentlemen  who  have  taken  special  interest  therein. 

This  motion  was  seconded  and  carried  unanimously,  and  the  ap- 
pointment was  made. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Job  Williams  the  following  Committee  on  Ne- 
crology was  appointed  by  the  Chair  to  prepare  obituaries:  Job  Will- 
iams, J.  A.  Kennedy,  Miss  Mary  R.  Harris,  E.  L.  Chapin,  and  E.  A. 
Fay.  Mr.  Wilkinson  was  given  power  to  offer  honorary  member- 
ships to  prominent  men  of  the  State. 

The  following  paper,  entitled  "  Is  There  a  Better  Way?"  was  then 
read  by  D.  C.  Dudley,  of  Colorado : 

IS   THERE   A    BETTER   WAY? 

To  every  thoughtful  Superintendent  of  an  institution  for  deaf  mutes 
there  has  doubtless  occurred  the  question  whether  or  not  even  our 
best  regulated  schools  are  doing  all  for  those  committed  to  their  care 
that  an  enlightened  public  has  a  right  to  demand;  whether,  in  short, 
we  are  rendering  a  quid  pro  quo  to  our  respective  States  for  the  bur- 
den they  assume  in  supporting  such  institutions,  and  if  not,  whether 
the  failure  is  the  result  of  the  inherent  difficulties  of  the  task  we 
have  set  ourselves,  or  because  we  are  not  following  the  very  best  road 
to  success. 

The  consideration  of  the  subject  is  forced  upon  us  by  the  every- 
where apparent  fact  that  many  deaf  mutes,  even  after  every  advantage 
has  been  afforded  them,  continue  to  be  helpless  charges  to  their  friends 
through  life.  They  seem  to  know  how  to  do  very  little,  and  to  be 
indisposed  to  do  even  that.  They  run  about  from  place  to  place 
seeking,  it  would  seem,  a  soft  job,  or  that  El  Dorado  where  money 
grows  upon  trees,  and  where  hard  labor  is  unknown.  They  are 
entirely  destitute  of  that  manly  independence  which  would  prompt 
them  to  indignantly  reject  any  favor  offered  them  because  of  their 
deafness,  and,  in  fact,  count  themselves  in  luck  when  a  sympathetic 
public  lends  them  unmerited  assistance  on  account  of  their  affliction. 

Now,  while  it  is  a  matter  of  thankfulness  that  this  is  a  picture  of 
only  a  minority  of  the  class,  still  that  minority  is  so  considerable  a 
part  of  the  whole  as  to  challenge  our  attention  and  make  us  desire 
its  reduction. 

What,  probably,  is  the  source  of  this  disposition  to  idleness  and 
disregard  of  obligation?  I  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  it  is  largely 
the  result  of  the  comforts  and  conveniences  of  life  in  well  ordered 
institutions. 

Let  us  follow  one  of  our  pupils  through  the  day  and  see  if  we  can- 
not get  a  clue  to  the  matter.  Arising  at  the  prescribed  hour  he  finds 
that  the  vigilant  fireman  has  been  up  hours  before  him  and  warmed 
his  dormitory  so  that  he  may  dress  leisurely  and  comfortably.  He 
descends  to  the  washroom,  where  hot  and  cold  water  are  to  be  had 
in  marble  bowls  for  a  slight  pressure  on  a  faucet.  His  ablutions  fin- 
ished, he  hies  him  into  a  comfortable  hall  lighted  by  gas  or  electricity, 
where  he  joins  his  boon  companions  for  a  half  hour's  paradise  of 
small  talk.  Breakfast  is  then  announced,  and,  being  ushered  into  a 
well  appointed  room,  he  finds  that  his  servants — the  State,  the  Super- 


OF   AMERICAN    INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  13 

intendent,  the  steward,  Matron,  and  cook — have  furnished  the  means 
and  done  all  the  brain  work  and  physical  labor  necessary  to  secure 
him  a  good  substantial  meal.  Not  having  had  to  expend  any  of  his 
energy  to  provide  this  food,  he  vents  what  he  has  upon  criticising  the 
staleness  of  the  bread,  the  weakness  of  the  coffee,  and  the  strength  of 
the  butter,  until  he  works  himself  and  his  companions  up  into  the 
belief  that  he  is  doing  the  authorities  a  great  favor  by  partaking  of 
what  is  set  before  him. 

After  breakfast  a  little  play,  and  then  the  labors  of  the  day  begin— 
labors  of  the  officers  and  teachers,  but  not  of  the  pupil.  First  of  all, 
he  repairs  to  the  chapel,  where  the  Superintendent  delights  him  with 
a  lecture  which  has  cost  an  hour  or  so  of  brain  work  to  prepare,  and 
which  he  accepts  as  a  matter  of  course.  The  teacher  next  takes  the 
young  gentleman  in  charge.  He  furnishes  him  with  pads,  pencils, 
books,  slate,  sponge,  etc.,  and  if  he  tears  one,  throws  away  another, 
and  loses  a  third,  a  new  article  is  on  hand  to  take  its  place.  The 
State  is  rich,  you  know,  so  there  is  no  necessity  for  economy.  The 
teacher,  good,  honest  soul,  puzzles  his  or  her  brain,  and  is  often  in  an 
agony  of  anxiety  lest  the  pupil  should  not  learn.  He,  himself,  how- 
ever, wonders  why  any  one  should  take  the  matter  so  much  to  heart. 
If  the  teacher  can  work  up  his  own  enthusiasm  to  a  high  pitch,  and 
present  his  instruction  in  an  attractive  manner,  and  if  any  of  it  gets 
in  among  his  mental  furniture  and  sticks,  well  and  good;  but  if  it 
doesn't,  what's  the  difference  ?  The  teacher  has  nothing  to  do  but  to 
teach  it  over  again.  He  is  paid,  in  fact,  for  this  very  thing,  and  there- 
fore has  no  cause  for  complaint. 

School  over,  a  nice  dinner,  the  result  of  somebody  else's  planning, 
awaits  him,  smoking  hot,  to  afford  consolation  after  the  laborious 
duties  of  the  morning.  He  sometimes  gets  merry  when  the  meal  is 
especially  good,  and  wisely  argues  with  his  fellows  that  it  is  better  to 
be  a  deaf  mute  than  a  poor  speaking  person. 

After  dinner  he  repairs  to  the  shop  and  remains  a  couple  of  hours, 
but  do  not  suppose  he  does  so  to  work.  Not  much!  A  large  share 
of  the  time  he  is  talking,  and  another  large  share  is  devoted  to  watch- 
ing the  foreman  take  his  (the  pupil's)  job  over  the  hard  parts.  The 
remainder  of  the  time  he  probably  labors. 

After  work  hours,  if  the  Superintendent  has  had  him  a  swing  put 
up,  or  a  croquet  or  baseball  ground  made,  he  plays;  otherwise  he 
talks  till  supper.  This  meal  comes  on  in  due  time  without  any  effort 
on  his  part,  and  he  enjoys  it  without  considering  for  a  moment  that 
it  has  cost  either  time  or  money. 

The  study  hour  is  next  on  the  tapis.  Here,  too,  he  has  some  one 
to  wait  upon  him.  A  supervisor  or  teacher  is  on  hand  to  lift  him 
over  all  hard  places,  and  give  him  the  meaning,  in  signs,  of  all  hard 
words,  so  that  he  may  be  spared  the  labor  of  consulting  the  dic- 
tionary. 

And  now  the  hour  for  retiring  has  arrived,  and  an  inviting  bed, 
spread  with  immaculate  linen,  washed  by  some  one  else,  wooes  him  to 
slumber  and  recuperation  for  the  arduous  toils  of  another  day. 

This  is  no  fancy  sketch,  but  one  that  appeals  to  your  own  experi- 
ence. What  wonder  then  that  eight  or  ten  years  of  such  training 
leaves  many  deaf  mutes  helpless  and  dependent,  unable  to  earn  a 
living,  and  angry  with  the  world  because  it  exacts  that  they  shall? 

Industry  is  a  matter  of  opportunity  and  development.  It  does  not 
come  naturally,  but  must  be  cultivated.     It  therefore  devolves  upon 


14  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

us  to  devise  ways  and  means  to  make  our  institutions  training  places 
for  the  real  battle  of  life. 

Steam  heating  and  water  pipes  and  laundry  machinery  cannot  be 
dispensed  with,  and  at  the  same  time  the  efficiency  of  our  schools 

Preserved;  but,  a  minimum  of  help  being  employed,  our  pupils  may 
e  required  to  wait  largely  upon  themselves,  to  eat  their  bread  in  the 
sweat  of  their  brow.  The  study  should  be,  not  how  to  make  it  easy 
for  them,  but  how  to  make  it  difficult,  and  to  give  them,  at  least,  a 
slight  foretaste  of  what  awaits  them  when  they  go  out  from  our  foster- 
ing care,  into  a  cold,  selfish  world,  to  win  their  own  bread. 

Let  much  importance  be  attached  to  trades.  Sometimes  I  have 
thought  that  all  our  institutions  should  be  organized  as  industrial 
schools,  with  an  incidental  educational  branch,  rather  than,  as  at 
present,  with  mental  training  absorbing  the  best  of  our  energies  and 
attention,  while  manual  training  is,  so  to  speak,  almost  ignored.  I 
am  not  unmindful  of  what  has  been  done  in  this  direction;  of  the 
comparatively  great  strides  taken  in  the  last  ten  years;  still  I  believe 
that  much  remains  for  the  future.  I  am  convinced  that  an  equal 
division  of  the  time  between  manual  and  mental  work  would  yield 
as  good  results  educationally  as  are  now  attained,  and  would  dimin- 
ish materially  the  number  of  deaf  mute  peddlers,  tramps,  and  cheats 
that  are  now  such  a  disgrace  to  the  class. 

A  single  man  laboring  but  a  day  may  throw  up  a  shell  of  a  cabin, 
while  it  may  require  the  labor  of  a  score  for  as  many  months  to  erect 
a  substantial  building,  still  the  latter  is  more  economical  in  the  end, 
and  if  we  purpose  making  good,  solid,  substantial  citizens  of  our 
pupils,  and  if  we  can  make  it  clear  to  the  public  that  that  is  the  end 
in  view,  the  economy  of  such  a  course  will  be  recognized,  and  a  suffi- 
ciency of  both  time  and  means  will  be  allowed. 

I  devoutly  hope  that  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when,  being  pressed 
and  urged  by  Superintendents  and  Boards  of  Trustees,  the  law  makers 
of  every  State  will  have  it  dawn  upon  them  that  taking  away  the 
faculty  of  hearing  from  a  child  does  not  necessarily  make  him  so 
bright  that  he  can  master  in  six  or  eight  years  what  is  required  of  a 
hearing  child  in  fifteen,  and  that  being  so  enlightened  as  to  the 
necessities  of  the  case  they  may  put  all  your  institutions  on  a  par  with 
that  of  Colorado,  where,  if  necessary,  we  may  receive  the  little  four- 
year  old  child  and  continue  its  training  until  it  stands  upon  the 
threshold  of  manhood  or  womanhood. 

The  Chairman:  The  paper  is  now  before  the  convention  for  dis- 
cussion. 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark,  of  Arkansas:  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  1  have 
listened  to  the  first  part  of  Mr.  Dudley's  paper  with  a  good  deal  of 
surprise.  All  of  my  manhood  has  been  devoted  to  the  teaching  of 
the  deaf  and  dumb.  I  have  been  familiar  with  a  great  many  insti- 
tutions, and  I  have  never  seen  the  picture  that  he  has  drawn  here  of 
an  indolent,  good-for-nothing  deaf  mute,  as  a  class.  There  may  be, 
in  large  institutions,  one  or  two  boys  that  will  fill  that  picture.  But 
take  our  institutions  straight  through — those  of  them  that  I  have  the 
pleasure  of  knowing — and  it  is  not  so.  1  am  at  present  at  the  head 
of  an  institution  in  which  I  have  been  but  for  a  year,  and  in  which 
it  was  the  aim  of  the  former  Principal  to  make  it  hard  for  the  deaf 
and  dumb — to  make  them  work.  When  I  went  down  there  I  found 
that  the  girls  of  the  school  went  into  the  washhouse  and  did  all  of 
the  washing  for  that  large  institution.    There  were  only  about  twenty 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DEAF.  15 

girls  who  were  large  enough  to  do  washing,  and  they  did  all  of  the 
Principal's  washing,  all  of  the  boys'  washing,  and  all  the  bedding 
and  everything,  and  in  that  hot  climate  they  ironed,  and  if  they  did 
not  get  through  by  Saturday  noon,  they  were  simply  told  that  they 
could  work  until  they  did  get  through.  If  to  make  it  hard  for  the 
deaf  and  dumb  helps  thern,  ought  not  those  girls  to  have  been  brighter 
than  the  girls  of  other  institutions  where  they  have  less  work  to  do  ? 
But  it  was  not  so.  They  were  worked  until,  when  they  went  to  school 
in  the  morning,  they  said  they  were  too  tired  to  study,  and  they  did 
not  try  as  they  do  in  institutions  where  they  are  not  worked  so  hard, 
and  they  were  a  long  way  below  the  average  of  those  institutions 
with  which  I  had  been  connected  in  New  York  and  elsewhere,  in 
which  I  have  taught  for  a  great  many  years.  I  am  sure  that  this 
picture  drawn  by  Mr.  Dudley  does  not  apply  to  those  institutions, 
and,  in  fact,  I  do  not  think  that  in  the  New  York  institution  of  over 
four  hundred  pupils  there  is  ever  more  than  one  pupil  to  which  it 
will  apply,  and  I  am  sure  that  it  does  not  apply  here.  I  am  sure 
that  it  does  not  apply, in  Minnesota,  and  in  all  of  the  institutions 
with  which  I  am  familiar  that  there  is  nothing  of  the  sort.  And,  so 
far  from  making  the  work  harder  for  our  children,  I  believe  in  teach- 
ing them,  not  for  the  work  that  they  do,  but  to  prepare  them  to  do 
work  in  the  future.  If  you  take  a  boy  and  make  him  work  until  he 
is  so  tired  that  his  mind  and  body  are  both  exhausted,  he  may  learn 
in  a  kind  of  mechanical  rut,  that  he  can  follow,  but  he  will  never  be 
able  to  make  an  independent  American  workman,  mentally. 

Mr.  Henry  White,  of  Salt  Lake  City  (a  deaf  mute):  We  deaf 
mutes  are  much  obliged  to  Professor  Dudley  for  the  reading  of  the 
essay.  But  I  wish  to  dissent  from  some  of  his  conclusions.  In  the 
first  place  it  is  not  deaf  mute  nature  to  want  a  "soft  job" — it  is  human 
nature.  [Applause.]  I  know  that  these  institutions  help  deaf  mutes 
greatly,  improve  their  minds,  and  make  them  desire  to  get  on. 
Every  class  of  people  has  drones  in  its  busy  beehive.  But  we  know 
that  the  deaf  mutes  who  do  these  things  are  always  shunned  by  the 
majority  of  their  fellows.  We  all  look  upon  them  with  contempt. 
[Applause.]  We  often  advise  them  to  settle  down  to  some  steady 
work.  In  some  places  deaf  mutes  are  steady,  and  earn  their  living, 
and  they  get  together  and  order  the  idlers  out  of  the  place.  I  think 
it  is  not  the  fault  of  the  institutions,  but  that  it  is  from  other  causes, 
that  such  is  the  case. 

Mr.  Wilkinson:  I  think  this  discussion  has  gone  beyond  where  my 
motion  is  of  any  use.  This  paper  has  something  to  do  with  manual 
instruction,  and  I  was  simply  going  to  suggest  that  this  whole  subject 
of  manual  instruction,  touched  upon  in  this  paper,  would  properly 
belong  to  a  general  discussion,  if  there  is  to  be  such.  I  thought  after 
hearing  this  paper,  I  would  take  an  hour  or  so  before  the  convention 
adjourned  to  finish  a  paper  that  I  have  already  upon  the  subject,  and 
with  the  permission  of  the  committee,  read  it  to  the  convention,  but 
I  do  not  care  to  do  it  if  we  are  to  have  two  or  three  different  oppor- 
tunities for  discussion  upon  this  same  subject.  If  the  convention 
thinks  proper  to  set  apart  some  particular  time  or  portion  of  the  day 
or  week  for  the  discussion  of  this  whole  subject  of  manual  instruction, 
how  it  should  best  be  given,  its  importance,  and  so  forth,  I  would  be 
glad  then  to  take  some  part  in  it,  either  by  the  reading  of  a  paper  or 
by  its  discussion. 

The  Chairman:   That  matter  will  rest  with  the  Committee  on 


16  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Business.  They  will  soon  be  able  to  notify  us  what  papers  they  will 
have,  so  that  all  papers  upon  one  subject  may  be  brought  before  the 
convention  and  discussed  at  one  time.  We  are  now  waiting  for  that 
committee  to  report. 

Mr.  Dudley:  I  desire  a  moment  to  say  a  word  or  two  in  self 
defense.  I  want  to  set  myself  right  before  the  deaf  mutes  of  this 
convention.  I  made  no  attack  upon  Mr.  Harry  White,  or  any  other 
deaf  mute  in  this  convention.  I  presume  that  these  deaf  mutes  here 
are  earning  their  own  living,  and  the  only  deaf  mutes  to  whom  I 
refer  are  those  whom  I  have  designated  as  a  very  small  minority  of 
the  great  deaf  mute  class,  none  of  whom  are  here  to-day.  [Hear! 
hear!]  I  say  there  are  a  few  such  deaf  mutes — not  as  a  class — and  that 
the  public  judge  deaf  mutes  by  this  small  minority,  and  I  wish,  if 
possible,  to  reduce  even  this  small  minority. 

Dr.  Peet,  of  New  York:  We  have  had  two  pictures — two  extreme 
pictures — brought  before  us  at  our  session,  which,  unfortunately,  occa- 
sionally exist,  where  a  child  of  hearing,  as  well  as  the  deaf,  in  the 
kindness  felt  by  those  who  look  after  them,  has  too  much  done  for 
him,  is  petted  too  much,  and  does  not  learn  habits  of  self  reliance, 
and  is  not  able,  from  his  training,  to  take  suitable  care  of  himself. 

We  all  know  that  a  boy  who  starts  out  to  earn  his  own  living,  who  is  a 
self-made  man,  who  learns  self  denial  in  early  childhood,  makes  the 
strongest  and  the  grandest  man.  We  all  know  that  a  girl  who  is 
taught  to  assist  her  mother,  to  render  her  all  those  little  kindly  aids 
which  the  circumstances  of  every  household  demand,  becomes  the 
finest  and  best  of  women.  We  also  know,  that  in  those  classes  of 
society  where  children  are  sent  to  training  schools  from  poor  house- 
holds, where  the  mothers,  it  may  be,  take  in  washing,  and  earn  their 
living  by  the  sweat  of  their  brows,  and  pamper  their  girls,  who  are 
getting  an  education  in  the  grand  State  Normal  College,  learning  to 
play  upon  the  piano,  who  come  home  and  let  their  mothers  do  every- 
thing for  them,  and  thenceforth,  all  of  their  lives,  look  down  upon 
this  poor,  toiling,  suffering  woman,  are  the  girls  who  make  the  very 
worst  use  of  their  advantages,  those  whom  both  society  and  their 
parents  have  spoiled.  And  we  also  know  that  in  those  poor  Oliver 
Twist  establishments,  where  the  children  are  brought  down  to  the 
very  verge  of  starvation,  who  have  to  earn  their  living,  as  it  were, 
by  the  sweat  of  their  brow,  who  have  no  friends,  nor  means  of  pal- 
liation of  their  condition,  how  poor  they  are  all  their  lives;  how  all 
the  elasticity  and  strength  is  taken  out  of  their  young  lives,  how  they 
are  like  the  stunted  oak  upon  the  mountain — they  amount  to  noth- 
ing. The  truth  lies  between  these  two  extremes.  It  is  a  grand  thing 
to  have  had  these  pictures  brought  before  us,  as  a  warning,  under 
all  circumstances;  it  is  well  for  us  always  to  act  with  wisdom,  with 
love,  and  with  a  true  desire  to  make  every  child  confided  to  our  care, 
whether  a  deaf  mute  or  a  hearing  person,  such  as  it  should  be,  in  all 
of  its  connections  and  relations  with  the  world.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  J.  L.  Noyes,  of  Minnesota:  I  am  very  glad  that  this  subject 
has  been  brought  before  us.  I  am  very  happy  to  bear  testimony  to 
the  fact  that  from  my  inquiries  into  the  condition  of  the  deaf  mute 
children  in  our  State  institutions,  my  conviction  is  that  the  men  who 
are  at  the  head  of  these  institutions  endeavor  to  lay  out  before  them- 
selves a  work  which,  in  its  bearings,  shall  not  be  temporary,  but 
shall  be  permanent,  and  of  an  exceedingly  high  order;  that  they  try 
to  so  arrange  affairs  in  institutions  of  this  kind,  in  all  of  their 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  17 

departments,  in  their  educational  work,  in  their  industries,  in  their 
amusements  and  recreations,  in  their  social  life,  and  in  all  their 
appointments,  as  it  becomes  a  good,  Christian  household.  We  take 
these  children,  many,  and,  perhaps,  the  majority  of  whom,  may  be 
called  the  waifs  of  society — but  these  waifs  do  not  all  come  from  poor 
families— and  we  introduce  them  into  this  Christian  household, 
and  give  them  a  start,  give  them  an  idea  of  what  study,  of  what 
behavior,  of  what  thoughtfulness,  of  what  kindness,  of  what  indus- 
try, and  of  what  pleasure  and  recreation  should  be,  and  so  establish 
them  in  all  of  their  associations,  and  so  fix  habits  in  them  that  by 
the  time  they  go  out  into  the  world  they  are  rooted  and  grounded  in 
those  primary,  fundamental  principles  which  characterize  a  good 
citizen,  and  a  useful  member  of  society.  We  all  know  by  experience 
that  it  takes  quite  a  time  to  habituate  a  boy  who  has  run  riot  in  the 
household,  who  has  never  known  anything  about  discipline,  or  what 
deference  he  ought  to  pay  parents,  brothers,  and  sisters,  to  observe 
the  rules  of  the  household.  1  could  give  you  chapter  and  verse  in 
some  of  our  very  best  families,  were  it  necessary.  Put  such  a  child 
as  that  into  a  Christian  school,  let  him  from  day  to  day  rise  at  the 
proper  time,  make  him  pay  proper  attention  to  his  ablutions,  to  his 
necessary  fitness  of  apparel,  to  his  behavior  at  the  table,  and  deport- 
ment on  the  playground  and  in  the  school-room,  and  in  all  places; 
let  him  become  habituated  to  that  from  time  to  time,  and  in  eight  or 
ten  years  you  may  expect,  and  have  reason  to  believe  confidently, 
that*  that  boy  will  never  depart  from  these  good  ways.  And,  Mr. 
President,  I  ask  for  no  further  confirmation  of  what  I  have  said  than 
the  lives  of  the  young  gentlemen  and  young  ladies  here  to-day,  who 
are  graduates  of  our  institutions.     [Applause.] 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Williams,  a  question  box  was  established  for 
the  use  of  the  members  of  the  convention. 

Rev.  Thos.  Gallaudet,  of  New  York:  It  is  with  great  pleasure 
that  I  direct  the  attention  of  the  convention  to  this  painting  of  my 
beloved  father,  which  has  just  been  hung  upon  the  wall.  It  is  a  very 
fair  representation  of  him.  It  is  painted  by  Miss  Mary  Peek,  a  teacher 
of  art  in  the  Illinois  institution,  at  Jacksonville.  It  is  a  copy  of  a 
picture  which  is  now  in  the  National  Deaf  Mute  College.  Mr.  Wright, 
of  Hartford,  was  the  artist  there.  The  artist  has  taken  a  little  license, 
but  presents  him  very  much  as  he  appeared  to  us  in  our  early  life. 
You,  of  course,  all  know  his  history.  He  was  the  founder  of  the  first 
school  for  deaf  mutes  in  this  country,  in  Hartford,  Connecticut, 
April  17,  1817.  He  showed  his  deep  interest  in  deaf  mutes,  how  full 
his  heart  was  of  love  for  them,  in  proposing  marriage  to  one  of  his 
first  pupils,  so  that  my  mother  was  a  deaf  mute.  She  was  honored 
by  bringing  up  a  family  of  eight  children,  of  whom  I  am  the  oldest, 
and  Dr.  Gallaudet,  there,  of  Washington,  is  the  youngest. 

I  made  up  my  mind  when  I  began  to  get  acquainted  with  young 
ladies,  in  college  days,  and  so  forth,  that  I  would  not  marry  a  deaf 
mute,  myself.  I  went  to  New  York  in  the  fall  of  1843,  at  the  invita- 
tion of  Dr.  Peet's  father,  to  become  a  teacher  there,  and  my  wife  very 
fully  converted  me  from  the  error  of  my  ways;  and,  therefore,  I  have 
a  deaf  mute  wife  as  well  as  a  deaf  mute  mother.    [Applause.] 

The  Committee  on  Order  of  Business  reported,  recommending  that 

two  sessions  of  the  convention  be  held  daily,  from  nine  to  twelve 

o'clock  a.  m.,  and  from  two  to  five  o'clock  p.  m.,  and,  if  necessary,  a 

third  in  the  evening;   that  the  entire   morning  be   devoted  exclu- 

2d 


18  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

sively  to  normal  work,  and  afternoon  session  to  the  general  work  of 
the  convention;  that  there  be  a  general  "query  box"  placed  in  a  con- 
venient position  in  which  all  questions  relating  to  our  work  may  be 
placed  and  referred  to  the  proper  divisions;  that  Mr.  Ely,  Chairman 
of  the  Normal  Departments,  have  charge  of  the  work  of  each  morn- 
ing and  report  line  of  work  day  by  day;  that  no  paper  exceed  twenty 
minutes  and  no  speech  ten  minutes;  that  a  Sunday  Conference  be 
held  at  three  o'clock,  at  which  moral  and  religious  subjects  pertain- 
ing to  our  work  may  be  discussed. 
The  following  order  of  business  will  be  observed: 
a.  m.  First — Prayer. 

Second — Normal  Department, 
p.  m.  First— Reading  of  Minutes. 

Second — Reports  of  Committees. 
Third — Reading  of  Communications. 
Fourth — Reading  of  Papers. 
Fifth — Discussion. 
Sixth — Miscellaneous  Business. 
The  report  was  adopted. 

The  Committee  on  Enrollment  and  Credentials  reported  the  list  of 
delegates  present,  as  follows: 

1.  American  Asylum.— Job  Williams,  Principal;  Dr.  G.  0.  Fay,  Abel  S.  Clarke,  Miss  Ida 
V.  Hammond. 

Honorary  Members.— Miss  Clara  D.  Capron,  Mrs.  A.  B.  Hendryx,  Miss  Alice  A.  Hendryx. 

2.  Arkansas.— F.  D.  Clark,  Principal. 

3.  California.— Warring  Wilkinson,  Principal;  G.  B.  Goodall,  C.  T.  Wilkinson,  T.  d'  Es- 
trella,  Henry  Frank,  Douglas  Tilden,  Miss  A.  B.  Carter,  Miss  M.  A.  Dutch,  Miss  K.  A. 
Crandall,  Miss  M.  Day. 

Honorary  Members. — Hon.  George  Stoneman,  Governor  of  California;  Hon.  Geo.  E. 
Whitnev,  Hon.  A.  L.  Chandler,  Hon.  E.  W.  Playter,  Hon.  R.  A.  Redman,  Hon.  Geo.  H. 
Rogers,  H.  A.  Palmer,  T.  A.  Lord,  W.  L.  Prather,  Dr.  I.  E.  Nicholson,  Hon.  W.  T.  Welcker, 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.,  Prof.  Geo.  Howison,  Prof.  John  Le  Conte,  Prof. 
Joseph  pLe  Conte,  Prof.  W.  B.  Rising,  Prof.  Martin  Kellogg,  Mrs.  W.  Wilkinson,  Miss 
Maud  Wilkinson,  Mrs.  Geo.  Stoneman,  Mrs.  H.  B.  Willard,  Miss  J.  Osgood,  Miss  M.  J. 
Wiseman,  Miss  E.  Shaw,  Miss  M.  E.  Wright,  Theo.  Grady,  Ira  P.  Rankin,  Rev.  J.  A.  Ben- 
ton, D.D.,  Rev.  B.  F.  Crary,  D.D.,  Rev.  G.  A.  Easton,  D.D.,  D.  D.  Shattuck,  T.  L.  Barker, 
Dr.  J.  S.  Eastman,  Dr.  W.  A.  Grover,  Oscar  Krutmajer,  of  Stockholm,  Miss  Noyes,  of 
China,  C.  S.  Perry,  Mrs.  C.  S.  Perry. 

4.  Chicago  Day  School.— Mrs.  P.  A.  Emory,  Miss  Grace  D.  Emory,  Mrs.  Mary  A. 
Woodvvorth. 

5.  Church  Missions.— Rev.  Thomas  Gallaudet,  of  New  York ;  Rev.  A.  W.  Mann,  of  Ohio ; 
Rev.  Job  Turner,  of  Virginia. 

6.  Clarke  Institution,  Massachusetts.— Miss  R.  E.  Sparrow. 
Honorary  Member. — Mrs.  Sparrow. 

7.  Colorado. — D.  C.  Dudley,  Superintendent ;  H.  M.  Harbert. 
Honorary  Member. — Mrs.  C.  C.  Wynn. 

8.  Dakota. — James  Simpson,  Principal. 
Honorary  Member. — Mrs.  James  Simpson. 

9.  Deseret  Institution,  Utah. — Henry  White,  Principal. 
Honorary  Members. — Dr.  J.  R.  Park,  J.  B.  Toronto. 

10.  Georgia. — W.  0.  Conner,  Principal. 

Honorary  Members.— Hon.  J.  S.  Stewart,  J.  S.  Stewart,  Jr. 

11.  Illinois.— Philip  G.  Gillett,  Superintendent;  Mrs.  A.  J.  Griffiths,  Miss  Mary  Selby, 
J.  A.  Kennedy,  Miss  Elinor  Patten,  Miss  Mary  Peek,  Miss  Fannie  Wait,  D.  W.  George, 
Miss  Alma  Gillett,  Miss  C.  Luttrell,  Miss  C.  Gunn,  Miss  F.  Henderson,  George  Wing,  Miss 
Lou  Gallaher,  T.  J.  Rogers,  Philip  Hasenstaub. 

Honorary  Members.— Mrs.  P.  G.  Gillett,  Mrs.  C.  Bull,  C.  P.  Gillett,  P.  F.  Gillett,  Miss  J.  V. 
Gillett,  Hon.  M.  A.  Cushing,  Mrs.  Imogene  Cushing,  Miss  Annabel  Powers,  A.  E.  Ayers, 
Miss  Grace  Ayers,  Miss  Miriam  Morrison,  Miss  Jane  Russel. 

12.  Indiana.— Dr.  W.  H.  Latham,  Wm.  A.  Caldwell. 
Honorary  Members— Mrs.  W.  H.  Latham,  Mrs.  Wm.  A.  Caldwell. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  19 

13.  Iowa.— H.  C.  Hammond,  Superintendent;  G.  L.  Wykoff,  Superintendent  elect ;  D. 
W.  MeDermid,  C.  Spruit. 

Honorary  Members.— Miss  Sarah  E.  Wright,  Mrs.  H.  C.  Hammond,  Matron ;  Louis  Wein- 
stein. 

14.  Kansas.— S.  T.  Walker,  Superintendent;  R.  T.  Thompson,  E.  W.  Bowles.  Miss  Erne 
Johnson,  Miss  Jessie  Eggleston,  Frank  Metcalf,  Edward  P.  Gale,  Miss  Addie  McClure. 

Honorary  Member.— Mrs.  S.  T.  Walker. 

15.  Kendall  School,  Washington,  D.  C— James  Denison,  Principal ;  T.  A.  Kiesel. 

16.  Kentucky.— W.  K.  Argo,  Principal ;  Mrs.  Ella  Warren,  Miss  Jennie  Lee. 
Honorary  Members.— Mrs.  Clara  Lee,  Allie  Lee,  Miss  Zoe  Welch,  Miss  Ella  Warren. 

17.  Maine.— Miss  Ellen  L.  Barton,  Principal  of  Portland  School  for  the  Deaf;  Miss  M- 
H.  True. 

Honorary  Member.— Mrs.  Frances  A.  Strickland. 

18.  Maryland.— C.  W.  Ely,  Principal ;  G.  W.  Veditz,  Miss  M.  R.  Harris,  Miss  K.  H.  Fish. 
Honorary  Member. — H.  J.  Gill. 

19.  Michigan.— M.  T.  Gass,  Superintendent;  Thomas  L.  Brown,  Willis  Hubbard. 
Honorary  Members.— Miss  Phebe  Wright,  Miss  Adelaide  Birdsall. 

20.  Milwaukee  Day  School,  Wisconsin. — 
Honorary  Member. — Mrs.  Ann  E.  Chapman. 

21.  Minnesota. — J.  L.  Noyes,  Superintendent;  Miss  Mary  E.  Griffin,  J.  L.  Smith. 
Honorary  Members. — Mrs.  J.  L.  Noyes,  Hon.  Geo.  E.  Skinner,  Mrs.  Geo.  E.  Skinner. 

22.  Missouri.— W.  S.  Marshall,  Assistant  Superintendent ;  Mrs.  W.  S.  Marshall,  H.  C. 
English,  Miss  D.  A.  Grimmett,  D.  C.  McCue,  Mrs.  D.  C.  McCue,  Miss  E.  Reed,  Miss  Mary 
Harris,  J.  N.  Tate. 

Honorary  Members. — Mrs.  H.  C.  English,  Miss  M.  Provines,  Miss  Josie  Provines,  Mrs. 
Hughes,  W.  N.  Marshall,  Miss  Nellie  Wheeler. 

23.  National  Deaf  Mute  College,  Washington,  D.  C. — E.  M.  Gallaudet,  LL.D.,  Presi- 
dent; Samuel  Porter,  Edward  A.  Fay,  John  W.  Chickering,  Jr.,  John  B.  Hotchkiss,  John 
J.  Chickering,  Arthur  D.  Bryant. 

Honorary  Members. — Margaret  Allen,  Mrs.  E.  A.  Fay,  Miss  K.  F.  Gallaudet,  Denison 
Gallaudet,  Edson  Gallaudet,  John  A.  Jameson,  Jr. 

24.  Nebraska. — J.  A.  Gillespie,  Principal;  J.  N.  McClure,  Miss  Minnie  S.  Cox,  Miss 
Frankie  Saunders. 

25.  New  York.— Dr.  Isaac  Lewis  Peet,  Principal;  Mme.  Le  Prince,  G.  C.  W.  Gamage. 
Honorary  Members. — Mrs.  1.  L.  Peet,  Hon.  Erastus  Brooks,  Miss  Bertha  Brooks,  Miss 

Gertrude  Walter,  Miss  Caroline  Park,  Mrs.  L.  C.  Searing,  Rev.  Dr.  Storrs. 

26.  New  York  (West).— Z.  F.  Westervelt,  Principal;  Miss  Penelope  Reed,  Miss  Lucy 
McMaster. 

Honorary  Members.— Miss  Caroline  Perkins,  Miss  Angie  Powell. 

27.  New  York  (Institute  for  the  Improved  Instruction). — Dwight  L.  Elmendorf. 

28.  New  York  (  Le  Coulteulx). — Sister  Mary  Ann,  Principal ;  Sister  Mary  Dosetheus' 
Miss  Margaret  Staunton. 

Honorary  Members. — Rev.  P.  S.  Dunne,  Rev.  Dr.  M.  Faune,  Rev.  J.  D.  Biden. 

29.  New  Jersey.— Weston  Jenkins,  Principal. 
Honorary  Member. — Mrs.  W.  Jenkins. 

30.  North  Carolina. — W.  J.  Young,  Principal;  E.  McK.  Goodwin,  Miss  L.  B.  Turlington. 

31.  Ohio.— Amasa  Pratt,  Superintendent;  Geo.  W.  Halse,  Miss  Mary  B.  Straw,  Miss 
Mary  C.  Bierce,  Miss  Carrie  M.  Feasly,  Miss  G.  Camp,  Miss  Anna  Frost. 

Honorary  Members. — Mrs.  G.  W.  Halse,  Hon.  J.  S.  Hare,  Mrs.  A.  W.  Mann. 

32.  Ontario,  Canada.— R.  Mathison,  Superintendent. 
Honorary  Members. — Byron  Nicholson,  T.  S.  Carman. 

33.  Oregon.— P.  S.  Knight,  Superintendent;  Miss  — .  Woodmas,  Miss  Elizabeth  Early. 
Honorary  Member. — Mr.  Brewer. 

34.  Pennsylvania.— A.  L.  E.  Crouter,  Principal;  F.  W.  Booth,  Geo.  L.  Weed,  Miss  Laura 
De  L.  Richards,  Miss  Julia  A.  Foley. 

Honorary  Member. — Mi^s  Mary  A.  Silloway. 

35.  Rhode  Island.— Miss  Anna  M.  Black,  Principal. 

36.  South  Carolina.— S.  S.  Rogers. 

37.  St.  Louis  Day  School.— Delos  A.  Simpson,  Principal. 

38.  Tennessee.— Thomas  L.  Moses,  Principal;  L.  A.  Houghton,  Miss  Bettie  Davis, 
Miss  — .  Jackson. 

39.  Texas.— Rev.  W.  Shapard,  Superintendent;  I.  W.  Blattner,  Principal;  C.  W.  Simp- 
son, Miss  Lulu  A.  Jones,  Miss  Ola  L.  Wright,  Miss  Emma  Shapard,  Wm.  H.  Lacy. 

Honorary  Members. — Miss  — .  Shapard,  Miss  Sarah  Walton. 


20  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

40.  Washington  Territory. — W.  D.  McFarland,  Director;  Geo.  Layton. 
Honorary  Members. — Miss  E.  Van  N.  Young,  Miss  Clarissa  McFarland. 

41.  Western  Pennsylvania. — Miss  J.  A.  Shrom. 

42.  Western  Virginia. — E.  L.  Chapin. 

43.  Wisconsin. — Miss  Mary  M.  Jameson,  Miss  Alice  Turley. 
Honorary  Member. — J.  A.  Jameson. 

The  convention  here  took  a  recess  to  two  o'clock  p.  m. 


Afternoon  Session. 

President  Gillett,  in  the  chair,  called  the  convention  to  order, 
and  introduced  the  Hon.  George  Stoneman,  the  Governor  of  the  State 
of  California. 

Governor  Stoneman:  As  Executive  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Cal- 
ifornia, I  take  very  great  pleasure  in  performing  the  duties  of  host, 
which  have  been  assigned  me  on  this  pleasant  and  profitable  occasion. 

We  hope  you  will  make  yourselves  at  home  during  your  stay  with 
us,  and  help  yourselves  to  anything  that  comes  in  your  way.  If  you 
desire  a  big  squash  or  melon,  or  mammoth  beet  or  turnip  or  cabbage, 
you  will  have  but  to  say  the  word.  Just  put  it  in  your  trunk  and 
take  it  home  with  you.  We  can  show  you  fields  of  waving  grain, 
measured  by  the  thousands  of  acres,  and  fruits  of  every  description 
measured  by  the  carload.  We  can  point  with  pride  to  the  fastest 
horses,  and  some  of  the  finest  men  and  women  in  the  land,  east  or 
west.  You  will  find  that  the  people  of  California  are  never  satisfied 
unless  their  efforts  are  equal  to  any  and  every  occasion. 

I  had  almost  forgotten  to  mention  the  greatest  of  all  the  great 
things  for  which  California  is  noted  the  world  over,  and  that  is,  her 
climate.  When  the  stranger  comes  among  us  and  is  inclined  to 
grumble  and  find  fault  with  what  he  sees,  hears,  and  feels,  we  stuff 
him  with  climate  until  the  poor  fellow  is  forced  to  cry  out " Enough!" 

There  is  one  thing  we  have  of  which  we  all  feel  justly  proud,  and 
that  is  our  eleemosynary  institutions;  and  of  them  all,  perhaps  the 
Deaf  and  Dumb  and  the  Blind  Asylum  is  one  of  the  most  conspicu- 
ous. Located  in  the  center  of  a  dense  population,  and  accessible  to 
the  whole  people  of  the  State,  convenient  to  the  sources  of  supply, 
surrounded  by  the  beauties  of  nature — which,  alas,  the  poor  blind 
are  unable  to  see  and  appreciate — with  a  corps  of  instructors  not  sur- 
passed by  any  other  like  institution,  with  every  improvement,  both 
mental  and  mechanical,  of  modern  times,  it  ought  to  be,  and  we  claim 
it  is,  a  model,  and  one  which  deserves  the  fostering  care  of  a  gener- 
ous and  appreciative  public. 

As  an  adjunct  to  this  institution,  we  have  another  at  Santa  Clara, 
for  the  feeble-minded,  a  most  eminently  deserving  charity,  both  of 
which  have  enlisted  my  sympathies  and  all  the  aid  and  countenance 
I  have  been  able  to  give  them. 

You  have  done  us  the  honor  and  the  credit  to  come  thousands  of 
miles  to  see  us,  to  ascertain  who  and  what  we  are,  and  what  we  are 
doing.  We  hope  before  you  return  to  your  eastern  homes  that  you 
will  have  the  time  to  visit  all  our  eleemosynary  institutions  and 
show  us  wherein  we  are  behindhand,  as  compared  with  similar  char- 
ities in  the  older  States  which  you  represent. 

It  has  become  a  feature  of  the  times  to  hold  interstate  and  interna- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  21 

tional  conventions  to  discuss  principles  and  practices  for  the  allevia- 
tion of  suffering  and  the  benefit  of  mankind.  The  world  is  fast 
becoming  one  great  family,  and  each  generation  is  better  than  its 

Eredecessor;  and  it  behooves  each  one  of  us  to  contribute  what  may 
e  in  his  or  her  power  to  advance  the  general  good  of  all.    [Applause.] 

Hon.  Mr.  Brooks:  Mr.  Governor  of  the  State  of  California  and 
ladies  and  gentlemen:  By  the  request  of  the  President  of  this  con- 
vention it  is  my  pleasure,  as  it  is  my  privilege,  to  respond  to  the  wel- 
come which  we  have  received  from  the  Chief  Magistrate  of  this  State. 
He  reminded  us  in  his  last  sentence  that  throughout  the  world  we 
were  of  one  family.  And  that  recalls  the  sentiment  of  Holy  Writ 
which  says,  "God  has  made  of  one  blood  all  the  nations  of  the  earth 
to  dwell  upon  the  face  of  it."  We  are  indeed  one  family;  more  than 
ever  in  the  United  States  of  one  mind,  one  purpose,  and  one  future, 
in  unity,  in  prosperity,  and  in  activity.    [Applause.] 

The  Governor  has  been  pleased  to  remind  us  that  in  California 
they  are  a  restless  people.  I  have  never  seen  an  American-born  citi- 
zen who  was  not  a  restless  mortal,  moving  onward  and  forward  all 
the  time;  beginning  as  we  all  know  in  the  early  history  of  the  coun- 
try with  perhaps  three  millions  of  people,  and  to-day  numbering 
more  than  fifty-five  millions  of  people.  In  my  boyhood  the  center  of 
the  nation  was  in  the  State  of  Vermont;  to-day  it  is  west  of  the  City 
of  Cincinnati.    A  few  years  hence  who  can  tell  where  it  will  be  ? 

A  great  thought  is  that  in  the  State  where  I  was  born,  the  State  of 
Maine,  more  than  three  thousand  five  hundred  miles  distant,  a  man 
may  travel  all  this  way  and  reach  the  Pacific,  and  yet  geographically 
can  travel  as  many  more  miles  before  he  reaches  the  end  of  the 
nation.  No  fact  could  possibly  give  a  grander  or  a  larger  idea  of  the 
extent  of  the  country  than  a  statement  like  this. 

In  my  earlier  life,  as  a  resident  of  the  City  of  Washington,  I  knew 
something  of  the  beginning  of  this  State.  I  remember  the  time  when 
Senator  Foote,  of  Mississippi,  said  upon  the  floor  of  the  Senate  Cham- 
ber, near  the  close  of  a  session,  that  if  his  party  would  stand  by  him 
he  could  speak  thirty-six  consecutive  hours  and  keep  California  out 
of  the  Union  by  the  expiration  of  that  short  period  of  time.  And 
he  commenced  that  work ;  and  he  was  the  most  extraordinary  man 
for  lung  power  and  words  that  I  have  ever  seen  or  heard  before  or 
since.  And  if  his  party  had  stood  by  him  he  would  have  kept  Cali- 
fornia out  of  the  Union  for  that  session  of  Congress  by  talking  the 
bill  to  death  for  her  admission  to  the  Union.  What  a  change  since 
then !  Those  were  in  the  great  days  of  Clay  of  Kentucky,  of  Webster 
of  Massachusetts,  Calhoun  of  South  Carolina,  Poindexter  of  Missis- 
sippi, and  Sprague  of  Maine;  of  a  brilliant  class  of  men  not  one  of 
whom  is  living  to-day.  No  man  is  living  to-day  who  was  in  the  Sen- 
ate of  1835-6,  and  only  five  or  six  of  those  who  represented  the  nation 
at  that  time  in  the  House  of  Representatives.  The  population  has 
increased  as  we  have  seen  it  until  this  great  State,  so  wonderful  in  its 
attraction,  has  drawn  us  here  by  the  magnetism  of  those  who  repre- 
sent it,  by  the  gifts  of  Providence  in  the  wonderful  produce  of  the 
soil. 

The  thought  which  impresses  me  most  strongly  at  this  time,  is  that  in 
all  of  the  divisions  of  opinion  in  the  past,  in  those  memorable  times 
which  separated  the  States  of  the  Union  one  from  the  other,  when 
you,  sir,  in  the  discharge  of  your  duty,  was  upon  the  side  of  the  coun- 
try, and  some,  unwisely,  were  not  upon  the  side  of  the  country, 


22  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

we  have  seen  the  old  spirit  of  dismemberment,  the  old  spirit  of 
disorganization,  changing  into  a  manly  and  womanly  love  for  the 
country  and  the  whole  country  [applause];  not  one  star  polluted,  not 
one  stripe  erased;  bearing  for  its  motto  no  such  miserable  question  as 
"  What  is  all  this  worth?"  but  everywhere,  on  all  its  ample  folds, 
wherever  it  shall  float,  upon  the  sea  or  upon  the  land,  those  other 
words  dear  to  every  American  heart,  "  Liberty  and  union,  one  and 
inseparable,  now  and  forever."     [Applause.] 

Sir,  there  are  distinctions  in  States  and  peoples.  In  the  providence 
of  God  it  is  your  pleasure  to  preside  over  a  State,  gifted  as  you  have 
said  in  its  climate  so  that  it  is  distinct  from  almost  every  other  State 
in  the  Union.  And  if  I  am  permitted  for  a  moment  to  draw  a 
parallel  between  this  State  and  another,  between  the  rock-bound 
coast  where  1  was  born  and  the  Golden  Gate  in  sight  of  all  of  us  here, 
I  would  say  it  is  simply  the  distinction  that,  as  States  we  are  distinct 
like  the  billows,  but  one,  like  the  sea  [applause] ;  and  that  is  about 
all  the  distinction  there  is  between  us. 

Sir,  I  beg  leave,  in  behalf  of  all  these  people  you  see  before  you, 
representing  the  deaf  and  dumb,  and  some  of  the  blind  institutions, 
to  thank  you  most  cordially  for  the  welcome  you  have  given  us  here 
to-day.  It  will  be  a  pleasant  memory  in  our  future  lives.  [Applause.] 
We  are  thankful  for  two  things  especially;  for  the  domestic  welcome 
which  we  have  received  at  the  hands  of  those  who  are  permitted  the 
great  task,  and  I  hope  in  a  certain  sense  the  privilege  of  entertaining 
so  many  people  from  distant  parts  of  the  Union,  and  for  your  honor's 
welcome.  We  are  glad  to  be  here;  and  as  we  leave  this  welcome 
place  for  our  own  homes,  so  many  miles  away,  we  shall  bear  witness 
to  the  cordial  welcome  of  the  Executive  of  the  State  and  the  con- 
stituents whom  he  represents.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman  :  I  have  now  the  pleasure  of  introducing  to  you 
the  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  this  institution,  Hon.  R.  A. 
Redman. 

Judge  Redman:  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  the  chief  executive  officer 
of  the  State,  Governor  Stoneman,  having  extended  to  you  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship  on  behalf  of  our  fellow  citizens  at  large,  it  becomes 
my  agreeable  duty  to  receive  you  on  behalf  of  the  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  Asylum  of  the  State  of  California. 

I  therefore  extend  to  you  our  most  cordial  greeting,  and  welcome 
you  as  the  friends  of  progressive  education,  devoted  to  the  welfare  of 
those  whose  silent  tongues,  though  they  speak  not,  appeal  most  elo- 
quently to  the  tenderest  affections  and  earnest  considerations. 

I  trust  that  your  convention  may  be  a  success,  and  that  your  fond- 
est anticipations  may  be  fully  realized,  and  also  that  you  will  show 
to  the  public  what  vast  improvements  have  been  made  in  teaching 
the  deaf  and  dumb.  I  might  suggest  here,  Avithout  impropriety,  that 
there  seems  to  be  a  general  misapprehension  in  the  minds  of  most 
people,  as  to  the  nature,  character,  and  importance  of  these  institu- 
tions, the  general  impression  being  that  they  are  a  sort  of  charity, 
because,  perhaps,  the  name  of  "asylum"  is  often  employed.  Our 
institute  is  called  an  "asylum,"  giving  the  impression  that  the 
inmates  are  pensioners  upon  the  public  bounty.  This  is  a  great  mis- 
take, and  I  seize  upon  the  opportunity  of  correcting  it  at  the  expense, 
possibly,  of  a  digression;  but  I  do  so  with  the  hope  of  attracting  pub- 
lic attention  to  your  proceedings  as  they  shall  appear  in  the  daily 
press,  as  you  proceed  with  your  work.     While  it  is  quite  true  that 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  23 

many  of  these  institutions  are  called  asylums,  the  fact,  however,  is 
that  they  are  purely  educational,  as  much  so  as  are  the  high  schools, 
the  normal  schools',  or  the  State  University  itself.  [Applause.]  Prac- 
tically speaking,  they  are  a  part  of  that  principle  which  recognizes 
the  doctrine  that  it  is  the  right  and  duty  of  organized  society  to  pro- 
vide a  system  of  public  education  for  all  those  who  desire  to  avail 
themselves  of  it;  and  the  matter  of  the  student  being  deaf  and  dumb 
cuts  no  other  figure  than  merely  to  determine  as  to  which  of  these 
State  institutions  he  shall  be  sent.  We  all  know,  and  it  is  a  source 
of  much  consolation,  that  deaf  mutes  are  susceptible  of  the  highest 
degree  of  scholarship;  that  they  can  become  proficient  in  most  of  the 
arts  and  sciences,  and  skillful  in  many  mechanical  trades;  and  that 
their  lives  may  be  rendered  as  contented  and  happy  as  are  those  who 
can  hear. 

Now,  I  do  not  mean  to  criticise  nor  underrate  the  general  public 
intelligence,  in  what  I  say,  but  I  do  find,  in  general  conversation, 
that  very  few  persons,  outside  of  those  more  or  less  directly  interested, 
have  ever  heard  of  the  subject  of  teaching  the  mutes  to  speak.  I 
refer  to  "articulation,"  as  you  term  it  in  the  schools.  Not  long  since 
a  gentleman  called  here  and  met  one  of  our  pupils  near  the  gate  (a 
colored  boy).  The  visitor  knew  the  boy  very  well,  and  knew  that  he 
had  been  deaf  and  dumb  from  infancy.  The  pupil,  supposing  that 
the  visitor  desired  to  see  our  Principal,  politely  stepped  forward  and 
said,  in  his  articulative,  monotonous  tone,  "Mr.  Wilkinson  has  gone 
to  Oakland."  You  may  imagine  the  astonishment.  The  gentleman 
admitted  to  me  that  his  "  hair  stood  straight  up,"  but  he  denied  that 
he  sprang  into  his  buggy  and  laid  on  the  whip.  He  thought  that  a 
miracle  had  taken  place  [applause]  in  his  immediate  presence,  and 
that  he  smelled  sulphur.  So  will  many  people  be  surprised  when 
they  see  this  little  story  in  print,  but  may  not  be  so  badly  frightened, 
being  at  a  safer  distance. 

In  conclusion,  allow  me,  on  behalf  of  the  Directors,  to  place  you  in 
the  care  of  our  worthy  Principal,  Professor  Wilkinson,  who  is  a  host 
within  himself.  [Applause.]  Should  you  get  hungry,  or  even  thirsty, 
just  speak  to  him  in  the  sign  language;  he  will  understand  your 
wishes. 

I  wish  you  all  much  personal  happiness.  We  extend  to  you  the 
freedom  of  the  institute  and  its  surroundings.  Wre  bid  you  thrice 
welcome,  not  only  as  guests  who  are  worthy  of  our  best  efforts  to  enter- 
tain, but  as  guests  whose  presence  here  upon  the  present  important 
occasion  confers  upon  our  institution  and  State  an  honorable  dis- 
tinction which  we  fully  realize  and  appreciate,  and  we  unite  with 
you  in  the  hope  that  much  good  may  result  from  your  councils.  [Ap- 
plause.] 

The  Chairman:  I  will  now  introduce  to  the  convention  Professor 
R.  Mathison,  of  Belleville,  Canada. 

Mr.  Mathison:  Mr.  Chairman,  Your  Excellency,  The  President  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees,  ladies  and  gentlemen:  I  feel  a  little  lonely 
over  here  among  so  many  Americans.  But  I  have  been  doing  my 
best  ever  since  I  left  Chicago  to  get  acquainted  with  every  one  that 
was  coming  to  this  convention,  and  more  especially  with  the  ladies. 
[Laughter.] 

I  have  heard  in  the  past  a  great  deal  about  your  glorious  climate 
and  your  glorious  country,  and  I  think  I  have  heard  a  good  deal  about 
it  to-day.    This  morning  it  was  nothing  but  the  American  Union, 


\i 


&rr«AT>1&\W 


24  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

no  word  about  Canada.  I  know  this  is  a  great  country;  it  is  one  of 
vast  extent.  But  you  must  remember,  and  it  will  be  well  if  you  did 
not  forget  the  fact,  that  we  have  more  square  miles  in  our  British 
possessions  than  you  have  in  the  United  States,  including  Alaska. 
[Laughter.]  Your  country  is  vast;  and  your  agricultural  resources 
are  vast,  too.  There  is  one  thing  that  we  cannot  vie  with  you  in, 
though — that  is  the  great  American  desert.  [Laughter.]  We  have  no 
deserts  in  our  country,  so  you  are  just  one  ahead  there.    [Laughter.] 

Your  institution  here  is,  I  think,  all  that  our  fancy  pictured  it.  It 
seems  to  be  equipped  with  everything  that  is  necessary  for  the  educa- 
tion of  the  deaf  and  dumb  and  the  blind.  I  might  say  that  in  Can- 
ada our  institution  is  not  quite  as  large  as  this;  in  fact,  that  we  have 
not  so  many  institutions  in  Canada  as  you  have  in  the  United  States. 
So  you  are  ahead  of  us  there  again.  I  am  very  sorry  indeed  that 
there  is  a  necessity  for  so  many  institutions  anywhere.  As  there  is  a 
necessity,  however,  I  do  not  think  that  the  education  of  the  deaf  and 
dumb  could  be  committed  to  better  hands  than  those  who  are  here. 
I  have  conversed  with  a  great  many  on  the  train,  and  they  all  seem 
imbued  with  one  spirit — that  is,  what  is  the  best  method  of  advancing 
the  interests  of  those  committed  to  our  care? 

In  Canada  we  have  a  number  of  institutions.  In  Ontario,  the  one 
which  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  in  this  convention,  we  have  two 
hundred  and  forty-five  pupils  and  thirteen  teachers,  and  we  are  very 
well  equipped.  The  money  that  is  required  is  freely  given  for  the 
education  of  the  deaf,  dumb,  and  blind.  The  education  of  speaking 
children  there  is  attended  to,  and  the  deaf  and  dumb  and  the  blind 
are  not  forgotten.  Our  educational  system  in  Ontario  is  equal  to  any 
in  the  world,  not  excepting  the  United  States;  and  our  children  may 
go  from  the  primary  school  to  the  university,  and  all  free.  Our  institu- 
tion for  the  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  is  not  free  theoretically, 
but  it  is  practically.  We  get  them  in  from  all  quarters,  and  we  are 
glad  to  get  them;  we  are  pleased,  and,  indeed,  we  want  all  of  the  work 
of  that  kind  that  there  is  to  do  in  the  country.  And  our  other  insti- 
tutions for  those  afflicted  are  equal  to  those  of  any  State  on  this  side 
that  I  have  seen.  The  asylums  for  the  insane  are  models  of  the  kind  ; 
the  reformatories  are  models;  the  industrial  schools  are  in  good  hands, 
and  without  what  I  have  heard  so  much  of  in  this  country,  bullying 
and  politics.  Everything  there  in  connection  with  educational  insti- 
tutions is  entirely  separated  from  political  matters.  [Applause.] 
Persons  in  positions  there  are  selected  for  their  fitness.  You  will 
excuse  me  if  I  make  this  remark.  [Laughter  and  applause.]  We 
are  very  well  known  as  a  modest  people.  [Laughter.]  I  have  had 
occasion  to  remark  that  many  times  during  the  trip,  and  to  tell  a 
number  of  my  friends  who  have  asked  me  what  we  did  in  Canada, 
that  our  modesty,  in  fact,  has  kept  us  back. 

Your  country  here  has  advanced  with  rapid  strides.  You  have 
fifty-five  millions,  while  we  have  not  quite  so  many.  We  have  a 
country  though  large  enough  to  contain  as  many  millions  as  you 
have,  and  I  presume  that  in  the  future  we  shall  have  quite  as  many. 
You  have  many  railroads  here,  and  very  extensive  ones,  and  very 
long  lines.  We  have  had  occasion  to  use  some  of  them.  You  have 
narrow  and  broad  gauge  roads.  In  our  country  we  have  discarded 
narrow  gauge  roads;  they  are  not  fast  enough  for  us.  We  have  a  rail- 
way much  longer  than  you  have  in  the  United  States.  Count  us  one 
ahead  there,  please.    I  am  very  glad  indeed  to  be  with  you.    As  I  said 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  25 

before,  I  did  feel  a  little  lonely  at  first;  but  I  do  not  feel  so  lonely 
now.  Before  I  leave  this  country  I  expect  to  make  the  acquaintance 
of  every  one  connected  with  this  convention.  If  I  do  not,  it  will  not 
be  my  fault.  I  appropriated  to  myself  a  part  of  the  welcome  which 
has  been  extended,  although  Canada  was  not  mentioned.  I  suppose 
they  did  not  think  that  little  country  up  there  amounted  to  much; 
but  I  appropriate  the  welcome  which  has  been  so  cordially  extended, 
and  I  shall  do  my  very  best  to  appropriate  all  of  the  privileges  that 
come  within  my  reach.     [Laughter.] 

I  will  correct  one  impression.  You  all  seem- to  think  that  Canada 
is  a  very  cold  country,  and  you  have  been  sympathizing  with  me  on 
this  account.  Your  sympathy  is  wasted  in  that  direction,  for  we  have 
just  as  much  hot  weather  up  there  as  you  have  sometimes.  The  cold 
there  is  not  so  intense  as  some  of  you  seem  to  imagine.  We  live  there 
and  exist.  I  am  a  fair  specimen  of  a  Canadian.  I  was  born  there,  and 
the  cold  does  not  shrivel  me  up  as  much  as  the  heat  does  a  great  many 
of  you  down  here.  I  did  not  intend  to  say  anything  when  I  com- 
menced, and  probably  I  have  not.  [Applause.]  I  am  very  glad  indeed 
you  have  extended  so  hearty  a  welcome  to  me.  I  appreciate  it,  not  as 
to  me  personally;  but  it  is  to  the  Empire,  a  member  of  which  I  am, 
and  a  part  of  which  at  one  time  you  belonged  to.  [Laughter.]  You 
thought  that  perhaps  a  little  home  rule  would  suit  you  best,  and  I 
think  probably  it  has.  You  seem  to  be  well  able  to  take  good  care  of 
yourselves;  and  you  know  every  man  likes  a  little  home  rule;  that 
is,  if  his  wife  allows  him  to  have  it. 

In  conclusion,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  hope  we  shall  all  befriends; 
that  the  dividing  line  will  not  interfere  with  us  in  the  work  which 
we  have  come  out  here  to  do,  and  the  work  which  we  are  all  pretty 
well  paid  for.     [Applause.] 

I  think  the  devotion  of  this  band  of  ladies  and  gentlemen  cannot 
be  questioned,  when  they  will  brave  the  dangers  of  that  American 
desert  and  of  those  mountains  to  come  here  to  meet  in  California.  I 
might  say  that  I  did  not  think  I  would  come  at  first,  and  wrote  to  Dr. 
Gillett  and  said  that  the  distance  was  too  great  and  the  expense  was 
too  great.  The  distance  is  very  far  indeed,  and  the  expense  is  great, 
too;  but  then  we  have  not  got  as  much  money  in  Canada  as  you  have 
in  the  United  States.  But  I  changed  my  mind.  You  know  a  wise 
man  can  change  his  mind.  I  changed  mine,  and  am  very  well  con- 
tented. I  would  not  have  lost  the  trip  for  anything.  I  could  not 
possibly  see  such  mountains  in  our  country  as  we  have  passed  over 
in  coming  to  this  place;  and  we  have  not  so  many  of  them,  and  they 
are  not  so  high,  and  so  are  not  so  sterile  in  our  country.    [Applause.] 

However,  variety  is  the  spice  of  life,  and  we  have  had  an  exceed- 
ingly great  amount  of  variety  all  along  the  route.  We  have  had  good 
meals  and  bad  meals,  good  water  and  bad  water,  good  lager  and  bad 
lager,  and  everything  else  good  and  bad,  and  have  come  here  to  a 
land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey,  with  peaches  and  blackberries, 
which  are  my  especial  delight;  and  I  have  heard  many  say  the  same 
thing.  If  you  treat  the  Canada  delegation  the  same  for  the  next  week 
as  you  have  in  the  past  twenty-four  hours,  I  think  I  will  be  inclined 
to  stay  with  you  a  little  while.  But  when  I  get  back  I  shall  say  I 
think  with  the  quotation, 

"  Breathes  there  a  man  with  soul  so  dead, 
Who  never  to  himself  has  said: 
'This  is  my  own,  my  native  land.'" 

[Applause.] 


26  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

The  Chairman  :  I  understand  there  is  a  gentleman  in  the  house, 
a  very  firm  and  fast  friend  of  this  institution,  Senator  Whitney,  whom 
I  will  ask  to  come  forward  and  address  the  convention. 

Senator  Whitney  :  This  is  certainly  a  surprise  to  me,  to  be  called 
upon  to  say  anything  to  you  on  this  occasion.  I  had  no  intimation 
of  it.  If  I  had  I  should  have  felt  it  to  be  worth  all  my  best  endeavors 
to  say  something  to  those  who  have  come  so  far,  and  under  such  cir- 
cumstances of  discomfort  as  have  been  detailed  to  us  by  the  gentle- 
man who  last  took  his  seat,  to  give  us  this  pleasant  visit.  I  am  sure 
that  we  in  California  appreciate  it,  and  the  members  of  this  institu- 
tion and  all  the  people  of  the  State  will  strive  to  find  a  place  in  our 
hearts  large  enough  to  take  you  all  in,  and  keep  you  there  as  long  as 
you  shall  remain  in  the  State,  and  even  then  to  hope  that  you  may 
again  return  to  us  at  some  future  time.     [Applause.] 

Allusion  has  been  made  to  the  fact  that  I  have  heretofore  been  a 
friend  of  the  institution.  I  am  only  sorry  to  say  that  my  capacities 
in  that  particular  have  not  been  equal  to  the  heart  with  which  I  view 
all  institutions  of  this  kind.  And  as  I  come  here,  year  after  year,  at 
the  exhibitions  of  this  institution,  and  see  the  evidences  of  intelli- 
gence of  those  who  are  shorn,  in  part,  of  those  powers  which  a  kind 
Providence  has  endowed  the  most  of  us  with,  exhibit,  I  feel  almost  as 
though  it  were  a  blessing  even  to  be  shorn  of  the  gift  of  speech.  There 
is  a  grace,  a  beauty  of  intelligence,  a  charm  of  action,  something 
which  seems  to  attract,  which  I  find  in  the  schools  of  these  institu- 
tions, which  I  do  not  find  in  any  other  place.  It  does  seem  to  me,  as 
I  observe  their  progress  from  year  to  year,  that  their  means  of  com- 
munication are  as  perfect  and  certainly  most  graceful  and  charm- 
ing. So  I  have  often  thought  whether  or  not  it  would  not  be  a  good 
idea  if  we  had,  in  all  of  our  common  schools,  a  department  where  this 
beautiful  sign  language  should  be  taught,  where  people  should  be 
taught  to  understand  and  appreciate  the  eloquence  of  the  eye,  and  the 
grace  of  motion  which  you  acquire  here  much  more  than  we  do,  who 
are,  as  we  say,  blessed  with  other  and  further  powers.  At  any  rate, 
nature  compensates  for  all.  And  everything  that  I  have  been  able  to 
do  has  been  nothing  to  what  was  in  my  heart  at  all  times  to  do.  I 
think  you  will  find  evidences  of  the  generosity  of  the  people  of  Cali- 
fornia in  this  magnificent  institution.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say  that 
we  "are  proud  of  it.  We  are  proud  of  him  who  stands  as  its  head 
[great  applause],  and  who,  for  all  of  these  long  years,  has  devoted  him- 
self to  building  it  up,  with  a  devotion  which  is  as  rare  as  it  is  thorough 
and  efficient. 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  did  not  think  to  say  anything,  and  I  have 
said  more  than  I  intended.  I  can  only  say  that  I  thank  you  for  an 
opportunity  of  looking  you  all  in  the  face  and  of  saying  these  few 
words  of  welcome.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  In  the  year  1863  I  was  visiting  the  New  York 
Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  and  Professor  Wilkinson  was 
then  one  of  the  instructors  of  that  institution.  I  remember  we  were 
very  much  stirred  up  at  that  time  by  the  events  which  were  transpir- 
ing around  us,  and  further  at  the  south,  and,  getting  up  quite  early 
one  morning,  I  saw  Professor  Wilkinson,  with  the  "New  York  Trib- 
une" in  his  hand,  running  up  and  down  the  hall,  crying,  "Where  is 
Stoneman?  Where  is  Stoneman?" — almost  wild.  He  is  the  brother 
over  here  who  was  after  Stoneman  just  then,  and  I  want  Mr.  Connor 
to  come  and  tell  us  all  about  that.    [Laughter  and  applause.] 


OF    AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  27 

Mr.  W.  0.  Connor,  of  Georgia:  About  that  time  I  happened  to  be 
down  in  Macon,  Georgia,  with  a  wound  that  I  had  received.  We 
heard  of  General  Stoneman's  approach  to  Macon,  and  it  appeared  as 
if  he  was  going  to  come  in  there,  and  they  called  upon  us  hospital 
rats  to  muster,  and  while  I  was  not  after  him,  yet  I  was  armed  and 
ready  to  go,  if  somebody  else  had  not  caught  him  first. 

However,  about  one  year  after  that,  up  at  Salisbury,  North  Caro- 
lina, I  was  present  again,  and  he  just  reversed  the  thing,  and  caught 
me.  I  belonged  to  a  battalion  of  artillery,  and  he  captured  it.  It  is 
a  great  pleasure  and  privilege  for  me  to  be  here  and  to  be  caught 
again  by  the  General  and  his  Californians. 

I  never  attempted  to  make  a  speech  in  my  life.  As  I  said,  I  am 
very  glad  to  be  here,  and  I  think  we  all  are.  I  have  enjoyed  my  trip 
very  much,  indeed,  so  far,  and  expect  to  enjoy  it,  and  expect  to  hold 
on  to  it  as  one  of  the  pleasantest  memories  of  my  life.    [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  One  of  the  great  acquisitions  that  the  State  of 
California  has  received  from  the  East  is  Professor  Warring  Wilkin- 
son, and  the  man  who  discovered  him  in  New  York  is  here  this  after- 
noon, and  while  we  do  not  bear  any  malice  against  him  and  the 
Californians  for  taking  Professor  Wilkinson  away,  we  should  like 
him  to  give  you  an  account  of  himself,  at  any  rate.  That  gentleman 
is  Mr.  Ira  P.  Rankin,  of  this  State,  I  understand. 

Mr.  Ira  P.  Rankin:  Mr.  President,  ladies,  and  gentlemen:  I  did 
not  come  here  to  make  a  speech.  A  few  moments  ago  it  was  inti- 
mated to  me  that,  as  one  of  the  former  Directors  of  this  institution,  I 
might  be  requested  to  say  a  few  words. 

It  is  many  years  since  I  have  had  any  connection  with  this  insti- 
tute, but  my  recollections  of  service  in  connection  with  it  are  very 
agreeable  to  me.  I  look  back  upon  them  with  a  good  deal  of  com- 
placency and  satisfaction. 

A  Board  of  five  gentlemen,  three  of  whom,  I  think,  have  passed 
away,  and  one  of  whom — Professor  Benton — I  see  here  this  afternoon, 
were  appointed  by  the  State  Legislature  to  take  charge  of  the  prop- 
erty which  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  State  at  the  Mission.  We 
were  authorized  to  sell  that  property  the  best  way  we  could,  and 
select  at  our  pleasure,  wherever  we  could  find  it  in  the  State,  a  site 
for  the  new  institution,  and  use  the  avails  of  that  property  for  buying 
land  and  building  a  new  institution.  We  sold  it  for  $35,000,  and  after 
we  had  bought  this  land  we  had  something  like  $85,000  to  erect  and 
establish  an  institution. 

I  recollect  that  our  Commission  went  out  in  the  very  midst  of  the 
cherry  harvest,  and  we  were  called  to  various  parts  of  the  State — to 
Santa  Clara,  Martinez,  and  other  places.  Wherever  we  went  we  were 
taken,  the  first  thing,  into  the  cherry  orchards,  and  invariably  helped 
ourselves  to  eat  as  delicious  cherries  as  can  be  found  anywhere  in  the 
world.  This  is  the  result  of  our  search.  We  came  to  this  place. 
There  were  no  cherries  here;  no  trees  or  shrubs  in  sight  in  all  this 
location;  but  with  an  imaginative  eye,  I  suppose,  we  saw  what  this 
place  was  capable  of  becoming,  and  we  secured  this  site — in  the  first 
place  forty  acres  of  ground  here,  and  afterwards  eighty  acres,  running 
from  the  road  to  the  hills,  making  a  hundred  and  twenty  acres — and 
built  the  institution  upon,  I  think,  the  very  site  of  this  building — a 
stone  building— the  whole  institution  being  at  that  time  embraced 
within  those  walls  only,  and  we  had  great  satisfaction  in  carrying 
through  the  enterprise;  and,  Mr.  Governor,  I  can  say  this:  You  will 


28  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

appreciate  the  kindness  with  which  we  were  treated.  We  spent  a 
great  deal  more  money  than  we  were  authorized  to  do  by  law — we 
were  prohibited  expending  anymore  money  than  arose  from  the  pro- 
ceeds of  the  sale  of  that  land.  When  we  came  to  contract  for  a  suit- 
able building  we  found  that  it  would  cost  about  $125,000,  while  we 
had  but  $50,000,  and  it  would  be  two  years  before  the  Legislature 
would  meet  again.  We  saw  that  the  money  we  had  to  use  was  entirely 
inadequate.  We  trusted  to  our  own  judgment,  and  the  confidence 
which  we  had  in  the  authorities  of  the  State,  to  go  on  and  make  our 
contracts,  only  subject  to  the  condition  that  when  we  had  expended 
our  money  the  contractors  were  bound  to  stop.  But  when  the  Legis- 
lature came  together,  in  the  mutations  of  politics,  the  Legislature  at 
that  time  had  become  a  Democratic  Legislature,  yet  they  gave  us 
every  dollar  of  money  we  asked  for.  [Applause.]  They  sent  their 
committees  here  to  investigate  and  examine  into  our  doings,  and  I 
think  Professor  Wilkinson,  who  was  here,  will  agree  with  me  in  say- 
ing that  at  no  point  did  they  criticise  any  expenditure  or  contract  we 
had  made;  and  I  believe  they  approved  everything,  which  says  a 
good  deal,  either  for  the  capacity,  integrity,  or  plausibility  of  the 
Board  of  Directors  who  had  the  business  in  charge.  At  all  events, 
they  found  no  fault  with  us. 

But  I  think  the  greatest  thing  we  did  was  the  very  thing,  Mr. 
Chairman,  which  you  referred  to — sending  East  about  that  time  and 
getting  Professor  Wilkinson  out  here  to  take  charge  of  this  institu- 
tion.    [Applause.] 

Of  course  we  knew  nothing  of  this  matter  of  instructing  the  deaf 
and  dumb  and  the  blind,  technically  or  professionally.  We  were 
not  experts.  But  so  far  as  our  judgment  went,  he  was  the  man  pre- 
eminently qualified  for  Principal  of  such  an  institution.  [Applause.] 
He  has  so  commended  himself,  from  that  time  to  this,  to  the  people 
of  the  State,  to  the  authorities,  to  the  Legislature  and  the  executive 
officers  of  the  State,  that  when  he  has  gone  to  the  Legislature  at  any 
time  to  ask  for  appropriations  for  additional  buildings,  additional 
facilities  of  any  kind,  he  has  been  successful.  I  cannot  say,  positively, 
that  his  success  is  entirely  owing  to  the  confidence  that  the  Legisla- 
ture has  in  every  case,  in  his  integrity  and  ability — it  may  be  that 
his  eloquence  is  so  winning  and  persuasive  that  he  has  prevailed 
upon  them  and  gained  their  sympathies,  against  their  superior  judg- 
ment. I  do  not  know  how  that  is,  but,  somehow  or  other,  when  he 
has  gone  up  there,  and  particularly  when  he  has  taken  Mrs.  Wilkin- 
son with  him,  I  believe  he  has  never,  from  the  first,  failed  to  get  any- 
thing he  has  asked  for.  [Laughter  and  applause.]  And  you  see  the 
result  in  this  institution  as  it  stands  here  to-day,  a  beautiful  institu- 
tion, well  equipped,  upon  a  site  which,  it  seems  to  me,  could  hardly 
be  excelled  if  you  look  the  world  over. 

I  am  trembling  a  little  for  Professor  Wilkinson.  He  has  been 
dealing  for  a  good  many  years  past  with  people  in  his  plausible  way, 
who  do  not  know  very  much  about  the  business  that  he  is  supervising. 
But  he  now  has  a  committee  of  experts  here  to  deal  with,  and  it  is 
very  possible  that  they  may  find  some  flaws  in  his  system  or  in  his 
mode  somewhere,  of  carrying  on  this  institution,  which  we  have 
never  discovered.  If  that  should  be  the  case,  I  pity  and  sympathize 
with  him.  But  I  hope  he  will  pass  scathless  through  even  such  an 
investigation. 

I  am  sure  that  I,  in  common  with  all  the  citizens  of  California, 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  29 

welcome  very  cordially  to  our  State  and  city  the  representatives  of 
these  institutions,  and  I  hope  your  time  will  be  passed  very  pleasantly 
and  profitably  here,  and  that  you  may  find,  out  here  in  California,  on 
this  outskirt  of  civilization,  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  some  new  ideas 
that  have  been  evolved  here,  which  you  can  carry  home  to  the  insti- 
tutions with  which  you  are  connected  on  the  other  side  of  the  conti- 
nent. 

The  Chairman:  We  have  heard  from  Canada,  from  the  Atlantic 
seaboard,  from  the  sunny  South,  and  I  will  now  call  upon  Hon. 
George  E.  Skinner,  of  Minnesota. 

Mr.  Skinner:  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  I  might  begin  my  remarks 
by  saying  that  I  am  a  '49er,  coming  to  the  State  of  California  in  1849. 
Of  course  you  may  imagine  my  surprise  at  the  improvements,  and  if 
my  remarks  are  short  it  is  because  of  the  great  surprise  I  have  expe- 
rienced in  seeing  the  improvements  that  have  been  made  in  this  time. 
I  have  been  very  much  interested  in  the  remarks  that  have  been 
made,  not  only  by  the  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Directors,  but  also 
by  the  last  gentleman  who  has  had  the  floor.  It  is  the  practical  effect 
and  business  effect  of  these  institutions  which  I,  in  a  few  remarks, 
propose  to  refer  to. 

In  the  first  place,  I. agree  with  the  gentleman,  the  President  of  the 
Board  of  Directors  of  this  institution,  that  these  are  not  charitable 
institutions;  that  they  are  institutions  of  learning;  that  every  deaf, 
dumb,  and  blind  child  in  the  United  States  is  as  much  entitled  to  an 
education  as  your  child  or  mine,  in  any  institution  in  the  land. 
[Applause.]  I  trust  and  hope  that  every  State  in  this  Union  where 
these  institutions  are  designated  as  "asylums,"  will  change  it,  as  we 
have  in  Minnesota,  to  "educational  institutions."     [Applause.] 

There  have  been  some  remarks  made  here  about  the  manner  of 
obtaining  money  to  carry  on  these  institutions.  Of  course  it  requires 
a  vast  amount  of  money.  I  have  no  doubt  there  are  millions  of  dol- 
lars invested  in  these  institutions,  and  their  current  expenses  require 
a  vast  amount  of  money.  But  it  only  requires  that  the  people  of 
every  State  should  have  confidence  in  the  Directors.  When  they 
have  that,  you  will,  in  my  opinion,  receive  all  the  money  you  require. 
And  if,  through  the  application  of  your  Superintendents  you  do  not 
succeed,  I  will  tell  you  one  process  that  never  fails;  we  have  had  a 
little  experience  of  that  in  Minnesota.  We  wanted  thousands  and 
thousands  of  dollars  there,  at  one  time,  to  build  up  the  institution. 
We  had  made  application  to  the  Legislature,  and  of  course  those 
members  coming  in  did  not  fully  realize  the  position  we  were  in.  It 
was  finally  suggested,  after  the  institution  had  been  carried  on  for  a 
few  years,  that  we  should  invite  the  Legislature  to  an  exhibition,  and 
that  after  that  our  Superintendent,  Mr.  Noyes,  would  take  charge  of 
the  balance  of  it.  They  came  down  there  in  a  body,  and  the  pupils 
went  through  their  exercises,  and  the  exhibition  I  remember  quite 
well.  Mr.  Noyes  invited  a  young  lady  who  was  to  graduate  at  that 
time,  upon  the  stage,  to  say  the  Lord's  Prayer  in  the  sign  language, 
which  she  did,  before  that  assembled  body  of  legislators.  I  had  a 
little  curiosity  to  see  the  effect  which  that  had  upon  those  men,  and  I 
saw  tears  rolling  from  eyes  which  were  unused  to  weeping.  The 
result  of  that  was:  "How  much  money  do  you  want,  name  the 
amount?"  and  the  difficulty  with  us  was  to  persuade  them  not  to 
give  too  much,  and  from  that  day  to  this  we  have  never  asked  the 
State  of  Minnesota  for  an  appropriation  to  carry  on  not  only  build- 


30  PROCEEDINGS  OP  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

ings,  but  the  current  expenses  of  that  institution,  but  what  it  has 
been  freely  and  gracefully  granted  by  them.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  We  will  now  hear  from  Dr.  Isaac  L.  Peet,  a  great 
educator,  and  one  of  the  oldest  in  this  work. 

Dr.  Peet:  Mr.  President,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  fellow  workers  in 
a  great  cause:  I  feel  that  my  chief  claim  to  being  called  upon  upon 
this  occasion,  is  the  special  relation  I  hold  to  the  Principal  of  this 
institution,  who,  for  many  years,  was  associated  with  me  in  the 
instruction  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  the  City  of  New  York.  When 
he  first  came  to  the  institution,  I  had  been  in  the  work  fifteen  years. 
He,  at  that  time,  was  a  recent  graduate  of  Union  College.  He  was 
recommended  to  my  father,  who  was  then  the  Principal  of  the  New 
York  institution,  by  one  of  the  best  educators  of  the  deaf  and  dumb 
we  have  ever  had  in  this  country,  Mr.  David  D.  Bartlett.  To  look  at 
Mr.  Bartlett  and  then  to  look  upon  Mr.  Wilkinson,  you  would  say 
that  the  same  blood  must  run  in  their  veins,  and  so  it  did.  Mr.  Bart- 
lett conferred  a  great  favor  upon  the  cause  of  deaf  mute  education 
when  he  recommended  Mr.  Wilkinson  to  the  New  York  institution, 
without  the  knowledge,  on  Mr.  Wilkinson's  part,  and  with  the  rare 
insight  which  Mr.  Bartlett  brought  to  the  benefit  of  our  cause.  For 
ten  years  Mr.  Wilkinson  was  associated  with  me  in  the  New  York 
institution.  He  acquired  the  language  of  signs  in  a  remarkably  short 
time;  he  was  f ull  of  enthusiasm,  full  of  devotion  to  his  work,  and 
manifested  every  quality  which  makes  an  admirable  teacher  of  the 
deaf  and  dumb,  or  in  fact,  an  admirable  teacher  of  any  one.  He  had 
also  in  his  veins  the  blood  of  that  celebrated  educator,  Mr.  Charles 
Bartlett,  who  founded  the  Collegiate  Institute,  at  Poughkeepsie,  New 
York,  where  he  had  his  preparatory  education,  and  many  of  those 
methods  which  he  has  introduced  into  the  management  of  this 
institution. 

Mr.  Wilkinson  gained  the  affection  of  every  one  connected  with 
the  New  York  institution.  We  all  loved  him,  and  I  never  had  a 
severer  blow  than  when  we  were  obliged  to  part  with  him,  to  send 
him  to  the  Pacific  Coast,  to  the  great  State  of  California.  But  we 
felt  that  we  ought  not  to  keep  him  when  you  needed  him.  I  will 
state,  also,  in  connection  with  his  residence  in  New  York,  that 
while  he  was  there,  his  literary  qualities  were  acknowledged  on 
every  hand;  he  was  a  frequent  contributor  to  our  best  magazines  and 
papers;  he  was  a  member  of  that  very  exclusive  club,  the  New  York 
Century  Club,  which  receives  none  but  men  of  the  highest  intel- 
lectual position;  and  he  was  a  friend  of  artists  and  of  men  of  letters. 
He  was  not  merely  a  teacher  in  our  institution,  but  he  was  a  member 
of  the  great  fraternity  of  the  most  prominent  literary  men  of  the 
City  of  New  York. 

Such  a  man  it  was  hard  for  us  to  part  with ;  such  a  man  we  are 
glad  that  you  have  been  able  to  secure,  if  we  must  lose  him,  and  I 
congratulate  this  institution  upon  having  secured  his  services,  and 
I  congratulate  him  upon  the  manner  in  which  he  has  been  sus- 
tained by  the  appreciative  people  of  this  great  and  glorious  State. 
[Applause.] 

Thk  Chairman:  We  would  like  to  hear  from  Professor  Kellogg, 
of  the  University. 

Professor  Martin  Kellogg,  of  California:  I  am  very  glad  as  a 
citizen  of  Berkeley,  to  welcome  here,  what  we  see  present  to-day.  We 
of  the  University  call  ourselves  pioneers  in  Berkeley.    We  came  to 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  31 

Berkeley  and  put  up  some  large  buildings,  as  it  seemed  to  many  of 
our  friends,  prematurely,  but  you  learn  to-day  that  we  were  not  the 
first  of  its  pioneers  in  education  in  this  pleasant  town;  that  this 
institution  was  planted  before  the  State  University.  And  so  we  grace- 
fully yield  precedence,  and  acknowledge  that  this  institution  for  the 
deaf  and  dumb  carries  off  the  pioneer  honors  of  our  town.  It  is  a 
town  of  educational  privileges,  and,  in  behalf  of  the  University,  I 
am  glad  to  say  that  we  have  always  recognized  this  as  a  sister  insti- 
tution. 

There  is,  possibly,  a  little  danger  that  some  of  the  educators  will 
forget,  not  that  there  is  a  charitable  side  of  education,  but  that  there 
is  a  side  which  looks  to  the  beneficent  as  well  as  to  the  useful.  I  fully 
coincide  with  the  speakers  who  have  preceded  me,  that  it  is  not  neces- 
sary to  consider  work  carried  on  in  these  walls  as  charitable  work.  I 
know  that  the  opportunities  here  given  are  for  the  sake  of  giving  a  fair 
chance  to  those  who  seem  by  nature  to  have  been  denied  their  chance, 
and  in  the  University,  I  take  it,  the  opportunity  to  be  given  is  that 
every  boy  and  every  girl  who  comes  from  the  schools  to  us — for  we  take 
in  girls  as  well  as  boys  in  the  State  University — should  have  a  fair 
chance  for  the  higher  education.  Here  we  are  brought  back  to  the 
fact  that  there  is  a  beneficent  side  to  education.  For  those  who  come 
here  to  educate  these  boys  and  girls,  who  by  nature  have  been  deprived 
of  a  part  of  our  privileges,  they  certainly  are  called  constantly  to 
remember  that  there  is  a  beneficent  side  of  their  work.  And  as  we 
look  upon  their  work,  as  we  see  their  devotion,  we  feel  that  it  calls 
for  something  more  than  mere  business  capacity,  something  more 
than  mere  shrewdness  and  a  desire  to  get  on  in  the  world;  that  it  calls 
rather  for  a  benevolence  of  heart  and  disposition;  that  it  calls  for  a 
willingness,  if  need  be,  to  make  sacrifices  for  the  young  and  unfor- 
tunate; it  calls  for  a  lofty  patriotism  that  would  do  something  for  the 
State  in  which  you  live,  that  would  make  those  who  are  to  be  our 
successors  better  men  and  better  women  than  those  who  are  now 
upon  the  stage. 

I  say  there  is  this  side  of  education.  And  we  are  reminded,  as  we 
see  these  educators,  as  we  see  those  who  have  come  so  far  to  confer 
about  their  work,  who  take  such  a  lively  interest  in  the  work,  and  are 
ready  to  do  so  much  for  the  benefit  of  those  to  whom  nature  has 
denied  something;  as  we  look  upon  this  assemblage,  we  are  reminded 
that  education  has  its  beneficent  side;  that  the  children  may  be 
taught  signs  is  not  the  only  thing.  The  object  is  not  simply  that 
men  may  go  forth  and  make  their  living  in  the  world  that  Dr.  John 
Le  Conte  and  Dr.  Joseph  Le  Conte,  par  nobile  fratrum,  dwell  here 
among  us  [great  applause]  ;  that  they  teach  the  sciences  in  the  walls 
of  our  University.  No  such  motive,  certainly,  actuates  the  distin- 
guished professor  who  is  the  incumbent  of  the  Mills'  chair  of  moral 
and  mental  philosophy.  He  holds  aloft  a  banner  that  is  above  all  mere 
utility,  above  all  that  has  to  do  only  with  the  present,  spurns  this  dull 
earth  on  which  we  tread,  and  would  help  us  all  to  remember  that  we 
are  to  ascend  to  higher  regions;  that  we  are  descendents  of  the  skies, 
aud  that  thither  we  shall  return. 

I  welcome  all  of  this  assemblage  to-day  to  this  educational  town, 
and  I  may,  perhaps,  in  the  absence  of  the  official  head  of  the  institu- 
tion of  which  I  am  a  part,  and  who  might  speak  more  fitting  words 
of  welcome  to-day,  extend  to  you  an  invitation  while  you  are  here  to 
walk  through  the  grounds  of  the  University,  and  on  some  afternoon, 


32  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

that  you  will  find  the  library  and  art  gallery  open  to  your  inspection, 
Monday,  Wednesday,  and  Friday  afternoons,  and  the  buildings  open, 
and  also  the  collections  in  some  other  buildings.  It  is  our  vacation 
now,  and  most  of  the  Faculty  are  scattered  hither  and  thither,  but  we 
have  some  representatives  here  to-day,  and  if  you  desire  to  know  how 
a  professor  of  a  University  looks,  do  not  look  at  me,  but  look  at  them. 
They,  I  am  sure,  will  be  glad  to  see  you  at  the  University,  and  let 
you  know  that  we  all  feel  an  interest  in  our  young  State,  that  we  all 
cherish  these  institutions,  not  only  the  one  with  which  we  are  spe- 
cially connected,  but  all  of  these  institutions;  and  I  believe  we  cher- 
ish them  from  high  motives.  We  are  not  working  simply  to  pass  our 
lives  there  and  get  through  with  it,  and  *'  shuffle  off  this  mortal  coil " 
and  be  done  with  the  world  which  so  many  seem  now  to  despise,  but 
we  are  trying  to  lay  foundations  on  which,  in  the  future,  shall  be 
built  a  noble  edifice  of  education  and  of  moral  training  that  shall  send 
its  influence,  not  over  this  State  only,  but  across  the  borders  and  out 
over  the  ocean,  to  all  parts  of  the  earth,  that  we  may  all  help  to  do  a 
little  to  make  the  world  brighter  and  better  for  our  being  in  it. 

Ladies  and  gentlemen,  glad  as  I  am  to  see  your  faces  to-day,  I  am 
filled  with  sorrow  as  I  remember  one  face  that  is  not  here,  a  relative 
by  marriage,  whom  we  had  hoped  to  greet  upon  this  occasion  and  to 
entertain  at  our  home.  I  know  that  some  hearts  here  have  sorrow 
over  the  untimely  death  of  Richard  Salter  Storrs,  of  Hartford ;  and 
there  is  a  near  relative  of  his  here  to-day,  from  whom  I  wish  we  could 
hear — Rev.  Henry  M.  Storrs,  of  New  Jersey. 

Rev.  Dr.  Henry  M.  Storrs:  Mr.  President,  ladies  and  gentlemen: 
I  had  arisen  to  leave  the  hall  to  take  the  carriage  to  go  back  to  the 
city,  and  am  under  obligations  to  do  so,  to  meet  an  engagement  there. 
An  occasion  like  this  must  arouse  in  the  mind  of  any  man  occupied 
in  public  affairs,  or  connected  with  public  institutions,  the  most  gen- 
erous sentiments,  the  highest  appreciation.  I  did  not  know  that  this 
body  was  to  assemble  while  I  was  upon  the  coast. 

The  reference  to  the  lamented  gentleman,  a  near  relative,  which 
has  been  made,  touches  chords  of  special  sympathy,  when  I  remem- 
ber the  long  years  of  his  constant  devotion,  and  regarding  those  years 
as  a  sacrifice,  that  was  fitly  closed,  in  some  sense,  by  the  death  that 
was  the  commencement,  as  we  all  understand,  of  a  more  splendid 
career  beyond.  You  who  are  engaged  in  the  same  noble  service,  giv- 
ing eyes  to  the  blind,  ears  to  the  deaf,  and  tongues  to  the  dumb,  can 
record  your  names  with  his  on  the  generous  roll  of  service  to  man. 
You  follow  the  grandest  service  of  a  man  who  passed  through  sacri- 
fice and  early  death  on  his  great  career,  and  while  we  stand  amidst  the 
wrecks  of  men,  to  lift  up  those  who  are  bowed  down,  we  are  strength- 
ened by  the  thought  that  underneath  all  of  our  labor  there  is  a 
mightier  strength  than  ours,  a  more  persistent  will  than  ours,  and 
that  the  sacrifices  we  make,  and  what  we  do,  shall  be  taken  up  and 
borne  forward  through  the  illimitable  ages  before  us,  ripening  on 
into  grander  things.  We  bear  life,  not  as  a  sacrifice,  but  as  a  gener- 
ous gift.  Let  us  so  carry  it  that  when,  by  and  by,  blindness  and  deaf- 
ness and  dumbness  shall  all  disappear,  every  eye  see,  every  ear  listen, 
and  every  tongue  speak,  we  shall  strike  in  with  that  general  acclaim 
of  praise  that  will  oe  the  song  of  the  universe  forever.  I  thank  you 
for  this  generous  hour  which  I  have  enjoyed  in  companionship  with 
you;  I  thank  you  for  this  quiet  listening;  I  thank  you  for  your  noble 
service  to  my  race,  our  race,  God's  race  on  earth.    [Applause.] 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  33 

The  Chairman:  I  know  you  would  not  consider  our  exercises  this 
afternoon  complete  if  I  should  fail  to  call  upon  the  President  of  the 
National  Deaf  Mute  College,  President  Gallaudet,  for  a  few  remarks. 
[Applause.] 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  Your  Excellency,  and  President  of  the  Board  of 
Directors:  At  the  beginning  of  the  exercises  this  afternoon,  my  good 
friend,  the  President  of  the  convention,  spoke  to  me  with  signs,  in 
this  way  [showing];  and  I  spoke  to  him  thus  [showing];  which, 
translated  into  a  loud  whisper,  was:  "Gallaudet,  I  want  you  to  say 
something  in  a  little  while."  I  replied:  "No, no, no;  there  is  no  use; 
there  is  no  necessity  for  it."  But  the  President  has  a  way  of  insisting 
upon  things,  and  of  commanding  people,  that  is  very  hard  to  get  away 
from;  and  yet,  sometimes,  he  puts  people  in  an  awful  fix.  If  he  had 
called  me  up  about  ten  minutes  after  he  gave  me  that  warning,  per- 
haps I  should  have  been  all  right.  I  had  a  little  speech  turned  over 
in  my  mind  and  worked  a  little  into  shape;  but  they  have  stolen  it 
all  away.  My  thunder  is  stolen.  The  climate  of  California,  they 
have  been  all  over  that;  the  magnificence  of  the  welcome  has  all  been 
attended  to.  There  is  a  great  deal  of  feeling  left;  but  there  is  not 
much  more  to  say  about  it.  I  feel  much  like  everybody  else;  but 
they  have  all  said  it  for  me,  and  left  me  nothing  to  say  in  my  own 
behalf.  My  good  friend,  Mr.  Wilkinson,  he  has  been  carried  up,  up, 
up,  until  I  really  cannot  reach  him.  [Applause.]  I  am  very  fond  of 
Mr.  Wilkinson;  and  I  had  it  all  fixed  to  get  a  nice  thing  on  him 
myself,  but  it  was  all  taken  away  from  me;  it  was  all  gone.  Then  I 
thought  I  should  fall  back  upon  a  funny  story;  but,  Mr.  President, 
who  can  stand  here  and  tell  a  funny  story  after  those  noble  words 
that  have  just  come  to  us  from  lips  and  brain  that  seem  well  nigh 
inspired.  No,  sir;  I  must  preserve  my  funny  story  for  another  occa- 
sion; for  the  greeting  of  Dr.  Storrs  touches  a  chord  that  rings  deeply 
in  my  own  breast;  and  the  words  that  I  may  say,  and  must  say,  I 
would  be  false  to  myself  if  I  did  not  say  more  words  to  add  in  com- 
mendation and  in  the  most  fervent  admiration  for  that  man  Richard 
Salter  Storrs,  who  stood  by  my  side,  Mr.  President,  when  the  arduous 
duty  was  laid  upon  my  young  shoulders  to  organize  the  National 
Deaf  Mute  College  at  Washington.  Who,  but  Richard  Salter  Storrs, 
stood  by  me  as  the  first  professor  in  that  college  at  Washington,  giv- 
ing me  the  benefit  of  his  broad  and  deep  scholarship,  his  warm 
friendship,  and  his  entire  devotion  to  the  cause  of  deaf  mute  educa- 
tion in  its  highest  phase,  to  which  he  gave  himself  enthusiastically, 
until  health  gave  way.  And  I  can  only  say,  Mr.  President,  that  we 
who  come  here  and  accept  these  gracious  welcomes  from  our  friends, 
come  and  stand  side  by  side  with  them  who  have  reared  this  magnifi- 
cent State,  clothed  in  all  its  material  prosperity,  we  come  and  stand 
with  them  on  a  higher  plane  than  any  that  brings  us  to  think  of 
climate,  or  of  welcome,  or  of  comfort,  or  of  enjoyment;  we  stand 
together,  Mr.  President,  your  Excellency,  and  Mr.  President  of  the 
Board  of  Management  of  this  institution,  as  men  and  women  with  a 
purpose  in  heart,  with  those  who  have  a  cause  in  which  to  labor,  and 
for  which,  if  need  be,  to  shorten  life  by  effort  which  tires  the  brain, 
and  wearies  the  heart,  and  even  sometimes  paralyzes  the  hand.  To 
this  calling,  which  we  here  feel  it  no  shame  to  say  we  dedicate  our 
lives,  we  devote  ourselves  anew,  and  freshly  inspirited,  your  Excel- 
lency,'by  this  noble  greeting  we  have  received  here,  to  go  forward 
3d 


34  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

and  do  nobler  and  better  things  in  the  future  for  the  cause  of  human- 
ity, for  the  cause  of  education,  than  it  has  been  permitted  us  to  do  in 
the  past.    [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  We  will  now  proceed  with  the  order  of  exercises 
of  the  afternoon  in  the  way  of  business.  Is  the  report  of  the  Busi- 
ness Committee  ready? 

Mr.  Crouter,  of  Pennsylvania:  It  has  been  suggested  that  instead 
of  the  paper  which  was  to  have  been  read  this  afternoon,  and  which 
will  be  postponed  until  a  later  day,  to  be  read  in  connection  with  a 
similar  paper,  that  Mr.  I.  N.  Tate,  of  Missouri,  read  a  paper  upon 
"  How  Can  We  Secure  Better  Schools  for  the  Deaf  ?"  to  be  followed,  if 
there  is  time,  by  a  paper  by  Mr.  Jenkins,  of  New  Jersey,  upon  "Apha- 
sia in  Reference  to  Deafness." 

Mr.  I.  N.  Tate,  of  Missouri,  then  read  the  following  paper: 

how  can  we  secure  a  better  attendance  upon  schools  for  the 

DEAF. 

It  is  a  fact  greatly  to  be  lamented,  that  such  a  large  number  of  deaf 
mute  children  are  growing  up  entirely  uneducated.  It  is  said  that  at 
least  one  half  of  these  "children  of  silence"  are  permitted  to  remain 
in  the  densest  ignorance.  There  must  be  some  cause  for  this;  in  fact, 
there  are  a  number  of  causes. 

It  is  universally  admitted  that  there  must  be  special  methods  used 
in  order  to  educate  the  deaf;  that  they  cannot  be  taught  in  the  public 
schools  of  our  country;  that  uneducated  they  are  not  self  supporting; 
consequently,  schools  for  the  deaf  are  a  necessity. 

Of  the  many  reasons  why  parents  do  not  place  their  children  in 
school,  we  will  name  a  few: 

First — The  tender  and  yearning  love  of  a  parent  for  an  afflicted 
child,  so  predominates  that  it  overrides  the  judgment.  The  thought 
of  separation  is  so  painful  to  both,  that  in  mistaken  kindness,  the 
child  is  kept  at  home. 

Second — There  is  a  lack  of  appreciation  of  the  imperative  need  of 
the  child.  The  depth  of  its  ignorance  is  not  fathomed.  Most  won- 
derful is  the  intuition  of  a  father  or  mother.  How  often  have  we 
seen  them  translate  the  rude  sounds  and  awkward  gestures,  or  even 
the  profound  quiet  of  the  child  into  thoughts  that  would  do  honor  to 
the  most  gifted  and  cultivated  mind ! 

Third — There  is  criminal  ignorance  of  the  advantages  afforded  by 
schools  for  the  deaf,  and  sometimes  even  ignorance  of  the  existence 
of  such  schools. 

Fourth — Sometimes  the  child  is  kept  at  home  that  the  selfish  parent 
may  have  the  benefit  of  his  labor— claiming  that  it  is  necessary  to 
the  support  of  the  family. 

Fifth — A  large  class  of  pupils  are  supposed  to  obtain  a  sufficient 
education  in  one,  two,  or  three  years,  and  are  then  left  to  get  along 
through  life  as  best  they  may.  The  State's  money  is  squandered  on 
such  pupils,  and  they  derive  but  little  benefit  from  the  school.  The 
average  number  of  years  each  pupil  attends  our  schools  is  surpris- 
ingly small.  In  Missouri,  it  is  scarcely  five  years,  and,  we  presume, 
but  little  better  elsewhere. 

How  can  knowledge  of  the  school  be  disseminated  most  effectually? 
The  names  and  addresses  of  one  hundred  and  seventy-five  children 
not  in  school  in  Missouri  were  learned  by  means  of  postal  cards 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  35 

addressed  to  Postmasters.  To  parents  of  these  children  circulars  of 
information  were  sent.  Newspaper  advertisement  is  expensive,  and 
besides,  the  very  people  we  want  to  reach  do  not  read  the  papers. 

To  remedy  the  willful  ignorance  and  criminal  negligence  on  the 
part  of  the  parents  of  the  deaf  we  would  suggest  a  compulsory  school 
law.  We  are  aware  that  this  subject,  as  pertains  to  the  public  schools 
of  our  country,  has  been  worn  threadbare  by  discussion,  and  it  is 
said  to  admit  of  about  equally  strong  arguments  on  both  sides. 
Neither  are  we  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  one  of  the  most  formidable 
obstacles  to  the  enactment  of  a  compulsory  school  law  in  this  coun- 
try is  the  feeling  of  repulsion  that  arises  in  the  heart  of  an  American 
at  the  very  thought  of  compulsion,  no  matter  how  derelict  we  may  be 
in  the  discharge  of  obligations  to  our  fellow-men  or  to  our  children. 

In  arguing  this  question  we  will  consider  the  schools  for  the  deaf 
as  part  of  the  public  school  system  of  the  country,  and  hence  all 
arguments  favoring  compulsion  of  attendance  on  the  part  of  hearing 
children  will  be  shown  to  gain  added  force  when  applied  to  the  deaf. 
Is  it  not  true  that  the  States  have  in  the  past  made  sufficient  appro- 
priations for  the  support  of  schools  for  the  deaf?  Is  it  not  true  that 
more  than  half  the  deaf  children  of  the  United  States  are  allowed  to 
remain  in  ignorance?  Alas,  how  dense  and  dark  the  cloud  that  set- 
tles upon  the  mind  of  the  uneducated  deaf  mute. 

It  is  claimed  that  a  compulsory  law  is  opposed  to  free  American 
institutions.  We  would  ask  whether  we  Americans  are  not  born 
under  law?  Is  not  taxation  to  support  schools  compulsory?  Is  the 
one  more  unjust  or  oppressive  than  the  other,  and  does  not  the  law 
compelling  men  to  submit  to  taxation  to  support  schools  suggest  the 
law  requiring  attendance  upon  them,  that  their  benefits  may  not  be 
wasted? 

It  is  a  well  known  fact  that  those  who  do  not  utilize  the  means  pro- 
vided for  the  education  of  their  children,  pay  the  least  tax,  and  being, 
as  a  rule,  illiterate,  are  wholly  unable  to  educate  their  own  children. 
There  seems  to  be  in  the  heart  an  inborn  opposition,  and  even  an 
actual  hatred,  towards  any  law  or  institution  that  presumes  to  step 
between  the  parent  and  the  child. 

Now,  suppose  a  neighbor's  child  were  being  injured  bodily  by  an 
infuriated  parent.  Would  a  community  sit  quietly  by  and  allow  this? 
When  the  deaf  mute  child  is  left  in  ignorance,  not  through  malice, 
but  on  account  of  lack  of  information  of  those  who  love  it,  should 
there  not  be  laws  enlightening  such  ignorance  as  this?  The  result  of 
the  injury  in  the  one  case  is  bodily,  and  hence  temporal;  in  the  other 
it  is  mental  and  moral,  hence  eternal. 

Compulsion  should  not  be  the  foremost  thought  in  the  compulsory 
law.  The  leading  thought  is  to  enlighten  and  to  lead  in  the  path  of 
duty.  So  of  all  laws  dictated  by  an  enlightened  judgment  they  are 
but  Christianized,  condensed  rules  for  the  guidance  of  men.  It  may 
be  argued  that  as  prohibition  in  liquor  does  not  prohibit,  so  compul- 
sory school  law  does  not  compel.  We  admit  that  it  would  take  time 
to  successfully  enforce  such  a  law.  The  obstacles  to  be  overcome  in 
enforcing  prohibitory  laws  in  the  liquor  traffic  do  not  exist  in  enforc- 
ing compulsory  school  laws.  Men  are  goaded  to  violate  the  one  by 
an  unconquerable  thirst  for  drink;  they  would  be  tempted  to  violate 
the  other  by  an  unenlightened  selfishness.  Did  they  see  the  matter 
in  its  proper  light  their  tender  love  for  the  afflicted  child  would 
inspire  them  to  do  or  to  suffer  anything  that  duty  pointed  out. 


36  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

It  may  be  said  that  while  this  would  be  a  good  law  we  are  not  ready 
for  it.  I  would  answer  that  we  were  not  ready  for  many  of  the  best 
inventions  that  have  distinguished  our  age.  Many  of  the  wiser  ones 
were  not  ready  for  the  inauguration  of  the  Sabbath  schools,  nor  for 
the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  work  of  our  country. 

It  may  be  asked  why  we  instructors,  teachers  of  deaf  mutes,  are 
discussing  a  compulsory  school  law  for  the  deaf.  We  would  answer, 
that  while  we  are  not  lawmakers,  we  are  in  a  position  to  know  what 
laws  are  best  suited  to  the  deaf,  and  we  feel  certain  that  the  matter 
only  needs  to  be  presented  to  be  acted  upon. 

We  have  not  attempted  in  this  paper  to  enlarge  upon  any  thought 
presented,  but  hope  the  convention  will  see  fit  to  take  the  subject  up 
and  discuss  it  fully. 

The  Chairman:  This  is  the  only  paper  upon  this  peculiar  subject 
which  will  be  presented  to  the  convention.  Will  you  discuss  this 
paper  now? 

Rev.  Dr.  Thos.  Gallaudet,  of  New  York:  The  question  seems  to 
be,  how  are  we  going  to  aid  these  deaf  children  to  get  an  education? 
While  I  think  that  something  might  be  accomplished  by  a  well  de- 
vised compulsory  law,  I  will  venture  to  give  a  history  of  the  institu- 
tions of  the  State  of  New  York,  to  show  that,  although  circumstances 
may  differ  in  other  States,  the  time  has  come  when  those  who  lead 
in  the  education  of  deaf  mutes  should  open  the  way  for  other  institu- 
tions. It  is  very  natural  to  concentrate  upon  one  point,  and  for  many 
years  in  a  State  it  is  not  essential  that  another  point  be  established. 
The  experience  of  the  last  ten  years  in  New  York  shows  that  by  judi- 
ciously multiplying  institutions  we  have  brought  under  instruction 
several  hundred  more  pupils.  The  old  New  York  institution  had 
the  field  at  first — I  forget  the  order  in  which  they  came — but  two  or 
three  others  were  established,  one  at  Buffalo;  and  it  was  supposed 
that  those  were  sufficient.  There  came  a  movement  to  establish  one 
at  Rome.  That  has  now,  I  think,  one  hundred  and  forty  or  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  pupils.  Then,  soon  after  that,  came  the  movement  to 
Rochester,  and  that  was  thought  to  be  entirely  wide  of  the  mark,  as 
enough  pupils  could  not  be  obtained  there  to  make  it  an  institution. 
They  have  now,  I  think,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty.  Then  at  last 
there  was  a  portion  of  the  State  left  out  of  the  reach  of  the  ordinary 
means  of  travel,  away  off  in  Franklin  County,  in  the  northern  part. 
Two  years  ago  it  was  thought  expedient  by  some  gentlemen  of  that 
part  of  the  State  to  assert  a  claim  that  a  school  be  there  established; 
and  at  the  end  of  two  years,  so  established,  had  forty-five  pupils,  with 
the  expectation  of  having  sixty  at  the  beginning  of  the  next  term. 
But  there  is  a  singular  fact  with  regard  to  this  last  school,  and  that 
is,  that  the  majority  of  the  pupils  there,  the  young  men,  are  over 
eighteen  years  of  age.  I  visited  it  only  about  five  or  six  weeks  ago, 
and  saw  the  results  of  the  training.  Men  who  had  grown  up  in  igno- 
rance, twenty,  twenty-two,  and  twenty-four  years  of  age — you  could 
see  the  results  of  training,  even  in  their  physical  condition,  in  the 
way  in  which  they  looked  and  carried  themselves.  I  saw  them  when 
they  began  some  two  years  ago.  So  it  seems  to  me  that,  instead  of 
expecting  to  gather  in  all  of  the  deaf  mutes  from  every  part  of  a  large 
State,  by  compelling  their  parents  to  send  them  there  at  great 
expense — parents,  many  of  whom  do  not  appreciate  the  education — it 
would  be  better  to  bring  the  school  within  a  reasonable  distance,  and 
to  make  it  known  to  every  one  that  there  is  a  school  for  deaf  mutes 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  37 

only  a  little  way  off  that  they  can  reach  in  a  few  hours;  that  if  the 
child  is  sick  they  can  go  and  take  it  home;  thus  seeming  to  bring  the 
education  to  the  doors  of  many  families. 

I  only  say  this  to  show  what  has  been  accomplished  in  New  York. 
I  do  not  know  that  the  circumstances  are  the  same  in  all  other  States; 
but  I  do  ask  the  educators  of  the  different  States  to  be  careful  upon 
this  great  question,  so  that,  if  it  is  necessary  for  another  institution 
to  be  formed  in'another  part  of  the  State,  it  shall  be  conducted  by 
those  who  have  had  experience  and  an  interest  in  the  matter,  and 
not  left  to  some  new,  enterprising  person  who  will  have  to  get  expe- 
rience before  he  reaches  the  point  of  efficiency  and  success. 

I  believe  this  is  a  practical  question  that  we  must  all  meet;  and  if 
the  time  has  come,  let  us,  rather  than  hold  back,  press  forward  grace- 
fully; ask  the  State  to  look  around  and  see  where  a  second  institution 
can  be  formed,  so  that  we  can  take  another  step  towards  bringing  all 
our  deaf  mute  children  under  education. 

Mr.  Noyes:  What  per  cent  of  the  uneducated  children  of  New 
York  are  in  schools? 

Rev.  Thos.  Gallaudet:  I  am  not  prepared  to  give  figures.  I  am 
only  stating  the  history  of  the  last  ten  years.  The  great  proportion 
of  those  who  are  evidently  now  in  these  institutions  would  not  have 
been  sent  to  the  institution  in  New  York  City. 

Mr.  Brooks,  of  New  York:  I  am  very  sorry  to  differ  from  my 
friend  in  regard  to  the  multiplicity  of  institutions.  I  believe  in  one 
good  institution  in  a  State,  according  to  the  size  of  the  State,  but  in 
such  a  State  as  New  York,  with  five  and  a  half  millions  to-day,  it 
may  make  a  difference  whether  you  have  one  or  more.  We  have 
seven  in  that  State.  My  observation  and  experience  lead  me  to  the 
conclusion  that  we  have  too  many  educational  institutions  in  this 
country.  We  have  in  several  of  the  States  twenty  colleges,  and  a 
consequence  of  having  so  many  is  that  but  one  or  two  of  them  are 
at  all  fitted  for  the  work  designed.  It  is  better  to  have  an  institution 
like  Oxford  or  Cambridge  in  England  where  there  is  a  University 
and  it  may  be  twenty  colleges  in  connection  with  that  University, 
where  every  department,  every  kind  of  learning  is  taught  in  one  of 
those  institutions.  You  have  a  great  many  institutions  in  the  State 
of  Ohio;  and  we  have  them  all  over  the  country.  They  are  petition- 
ing continually  for  material  aid  to  execute  that  which  was  not  well 
done  because  there  are  not  the  means  of  doing  it  well.  I  dissent 
from  my  friend  altogether  in  regard  to  the  school  which  he  has  cited. 
He  went  before  the  Legislature  and  persuaded  them  that  it  was  essen- 
tial in  the  interests  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  to  have  a  seventh  institu- 
tion in  the  State.  What  was  the  consequence?  A  loss  of  a  great 
number  of  pupils,  or  a  number  of  pupils  in  our  own  large  institution 
where  the  education  was  much  more  complete,  where  a  child  could 
be  taken  at  the  age  of  six  and  prepared,  if  need  be,  for  the  college  of 
my  friend  in  Washington;  a  complete  education  in  every  preparatory 
department  of  learning. 

You  establish  several  institutions  in  the  State  according  to  the 
desire  of  a  member  of  the  Legislature  to  have  one  in  his  district,  and 
of  petitioners  to  have  one  in  their  district,  and,  as  a  consequence,  the 
members  of  the  Legislature — and  I  speak  from  experience — consent, 
to  gratify  the  member  from  St.  Lawrence  or  the  member  from  Monroe, 
or  the  member,  it  may  be,  from  some  other  district,  Erie  County  or 


38  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

elsewhere;  and  you  so  multiply  institutions  that  you  take  the  vitality 
out  of  the  institutions  already  in  existence  very  often. 

My  friend  says  there  is  an  advantage  in  having  the  institution  near 
to  the  neighborhood  of  the  deaf  mutes,  so  that  you  may  get  them  in 
the  county  institutions  where  you  could  not  get  them  in  the  State 
institutions.  That  is  possibly  true.  But  if  you  will  exert  the  same 
power  and  the  same  influence  to  make  your  one,  two,  or  three  insti- 
tutions complete  in  a  great  State,  you  will  accomplish  infinitely  more 
in  the  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  wThich  is  the  principal  thing 
desired,  than  if  you  have  a  dozen  weak  institutions  in  different  parts 
of  the  State.  Such  a  mode  of  education  would  commend  itself  to 
my  judgment  much  more,  and  to  those  who  study  this  subject  and 
look  at  it  in  all  of  its  consequences  from  the  beginning  to  the  end. 

We  have  in  the  great  institution  of  New  York,  which  I  represent, 
in  part,  the  means  of  educating  five  hundred  children.  At  one  time 
we  have  had  five  hundred  and  fifty.  You  take  them  from  this  insti- 
tution, and  put  them  somewhere  where,  of  necessity,  from  want  of 
experience,  and  want  of  proper  professors,  you  weaken  the  great  insti- 
tution and  do  not  at  all  strengthen  the  weaker  ones. 

I  will  refer  to  the  institution  of  Illinois,  presided  over  by  the  pre- 
siding officer  of  this  convention.  It  is  the  great  institution  in  the 
State.  It  is  the  largest  in  numbers  in  the  country,  and,  perhaps,  in 
the  world.  What  would  be  the  effect  of  establishing  in  the  great 
State  of  Illinois  two  or  three  institutions  there?  It  would,  almost  of 
necessity,  weaken  the  one  there  without  benefiting  any  of  the  others. 

What  is  wanted  to  reach  what  my  friend,  Rev.  Dr.  Gallaudet,  most 
desires,  is  a  larger  interest  by  the  people  generally  who  are  interested 
in  deaf  and  dumb  education,  by  bringing  them  to  the  main  institu- 
tion and  educating  them  there. 

Now,  as  a  question  of  economy,  what  is  gained  by  this  frittering  or 
drawing  away  from  the  great  central  institution  by  minor  institutions 
elsewhere?  What  do  you  gain  by  it  at  last,  saving  a  little  travel  in 
these  days  of  rapid  transit  from  one  end  of  the  State  to  the  other? 
You  give  them  a  comparatively  inefficient  education.  It  is  impossi- 
ble for  them  to  have  all  the  means  in  these  new  institutions  which 
they  have  in  the  larger  ones.  And  hence,  in  my  judgment,  it  is  a 
mistake  to  multiply  your  institutions  except  in  cases  of  absolute 
necessity  growing  out  of  their  large  extension  of  territory.  [Applause.] 

Rev.  T.  H.  Gallaudet:  I  do  not  intend  to  discuss  the  question. 
I  think  there  is  great  force  in  all  of  the  remarks  of  my  friend,  Mr. 
Brooks.  The  only  point  of  my  friend  is,  that  experience  has  taught 
that  it  is  impossible  to  get  all  of  the  deaf  mutes  of  the  State  into  one 
institution.  But,  taking  these  institutions  that  have  been  formed, 
and  they  average  very  well  with  all  institutions  commenced.  They 
have  good  teachers.  I  have  looked  into  them  all,  and  their  progress 
is  the  same  as  in  the  old  institutions.  I  appreciate  very  much  what 
Mr.  Brooks  has  said  about  the  advantages  of  concentration.  But 
there  are  a  great  many  people  in  a  large  State  who  will  not  send  their 
children  two,  three,  or  four  hundred  miles  away.  Many  of  them 
will;  but  many  of  them  will  not.  I  fear  very  much  that,  if  we  make 
searching  inquiries  into  all  of  our  large  States  now,  we  shall  find  a 
great  many  deaf  mutes  left  out,  notwithstanding  these  wonderful 
advantages  which  are  offered  them.  It  is  a  serious  question,  and  I 
do  not  press  it  as  one  of  present  vital  importance.  It  is  very  appa- 
rent that  we  cannot  expect  to  educate  all  of  the  deaf  mutes  of  a  large 


OF    AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF    THE   DEAF.  39 

State  in  one  institution.  And  I  shall  ask  my  friends  who  have  had 
experience,  and  know  how  to  go  to  the  Legislature,  that  when  the 
time  comes  for  a  second  institution,  to  take  the  lead,  and  make  it  just 
as  the  parent  institution.    That  is  my  point. 

Mr.  Mathison  in  the  chair. 

Mr.  C.  W.  Ely:  I  agree  in  part  with  both  the  gentlemen  who  have 
spoken.  I  do  not  doubt  that  increasing  the  number  of  institutions, 
in  other  words  the  bringing  of  the  institutions  a  little  nearer  to  their 
homes,  will  in  many  cases  secure  the  attendance  of  a  child  that  will 
otherwise  lose  the  benefit  of  an  education.  I  think  it  cannot  be  ques- 
tioned that  a  central  institution,  with  its  larger  equipment  and  with 
its  better  facilities  for  classification,  can  afford  advantages  that  cannot 
be  secured  in  a  small  institution.  But  before  this  question  passes  I 
desire  to  call  attention  to  a  subject  which  has  not  been  touched  upon 
by  either  of  the  gentlemen  who  have  spoken,  and  that  is  this,  that  the 
multiplication  of  institutions,  even  with  the  bringing  of  the  schools 
nearer  to  the  homes  of  the  children,  even  bringing  them  near  enough 
to  be  reached  in  half  a  day's  walk,  you  cannot  always  secure  the 
attendance  of  the  child.  And  here  is  again  a  difficulty  which  pre- 
sents itself  to  us,  how  can  we  so  interest  the  public  that  they  shall 
make  it  their  business  to  see  that. the  deaf  mute  children  who  are 
growing  up  in  their  communities  are  secured  the  privilege  of  an  edu- 
cation which  the  State  promises  them.  I  presume  it  is  in  the  experi- 
ence of  the  head  of  every  institution  in  the  country  that  there  are 
children  living  within  easy  reach  of  them  who  do  not  come  into 
school  and  whom  they  cannot  get  into  school.  It  has  been  my  expe- 
rience, and  I  presume  there  is  another  experience  Which  many  have 
had  along  with  me,  and  that  is  this:  There  is  a  small  town  in  some 
distant  portion  of  this  State,  perhaps  in  a  portion  near  to  the  school, 
and  you  happen  to  have  a  scholar  from  that  town  in  your  school,  and 
you  ask  some  gentleman  who  knows  all  about  the  public  schools  and 
interests  of  the  community,  something  about  that  family,  and  you 
discover  that  he  does  not  know  that  there  is  such  a  child  in  that 
family.  He  knows  the  family,  the  mother  and  the  father,  and  he  has 
seen  some  of  the  children  possibly  in  the  public  school;  but  he  never 
heard,  until  you  told  him,  that  that  family  had  a  deaf  mute  child  in 
it.  Here  is  a  fact  that  meets  us;  that  we  have  not  yet  secured  such 
an  interest  in  the  community,  in  the  public  at  large,  that  they  take 
this  question  home  to  themselves,  that  they  take  an  interest  in  these 
children  that  have  been  deprived  of  some  of  the  blessings  which  we 
enjoy. 

Now,  the  question  arises,  are  there  any  means  which  we  have  not 
tried  which  will  bring  home  to  the  conscientiousness  of  the  people 
and  to  their  realization  the  fact  that  there  is  such  a  considerable 
number  of  children  growing  up  deprived  of  the  blessings  of  hearing 
and  of  speech.  We  try  many  expedients,  and  I  hope  that  here  in 
communication  with  each  other  we  shall  be  able  to  learn  from  each 
other  some  expedient  that  has  been  found  efficient  in  securing  this 
end  which  some  of  us  at  least  have  not  yet  discovered.    [Applause.] 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark,  of  Arkansas:  The  Principal  of  the  Rhode  Island 
school  requests  me  to  say  that  even  in  that  little  State  where  there  is 
only  one  institution,  they  are  unable  to  get  more  than  one  fourth  of 
the  children  in  school.  Would  the  gentleman  who  recommends  a 
division  of  schools  want  a  new  one  there  in  that  case? 

Dr.  Peet,  of  New  York:  Allusion  was  made  in  some  remarks  in 


40  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH*  CON  VENTION 

respect  to  the  method  of  influencing  Legislatures  to  sustain  an  insti- 
tution, which  has  a  bearing  upon  this  matter  of  inducing  the  parents 
of  deaf  mutes  to  send  their  children  to  school ;  to  bring  proof  before 
the  people,  enabling  them  to  see  it. 

I  remember  that  in  the  year  1844  my  father  went  through  the  State 
of  New  York,  taking  the  stage  coaches  which  then  prevailed,  and  vis- 
ited town  after  town  with  a  delegation  of  pupils  from  the  institution. 
The  result  was  a  marvelous  increase  in  the  interest  felt  in  the  educa- 
tion of  the  deaf  and  dumb.  People  would  see  that  such  results  would 
be  accomplished.  But  throughout  every  county  thus  visited  went  an 
interest  which  had  never  existed  before  in  the  education  of  the  deaf 
and  dumb.  The  result  was  that  in  the  succeeding  fall  there  was  an 
increase  of  seventy-five  students. 

In  former  times  when  the  laws  of  the  State  of  New  York  had  not 
been  formulated  so  perfectly  as  now,  and  when  the  policy  of  the  State 
was  not  absolutely  fixed,  it  was  necessary,  in  order  to  interest  the 
Legislature  of  the  State,  to  hold  exhibitions  before  them.  And  the 
result  of  every  such  exhibition  was,  not  only  the  acquisition  of  addi- 
tional means  for  carrying  forward  the  institution,  but  a  large  increase 
in  the  number  of  pupils.  And  we  find  now  that  in  order  to  keep  up 
our  numbers  it  is  necessary  to  give,  not  only  the  annual  exhibitions 
at  that  portion  of  the  State  where  our  institution  is  situated,  bat  also 
to  give  an  additional  exhibition  in  some  central  part  of  the  State,  to 
awaken  and  keep  up  the  interest  established  in  behalf  of  the  deaf 
and  dumb.  There  is  nothing  like  demonstration.  I  believe  that 
exhibitions  of  the  advancement  of  which  deaf  mutes  are  capable  are 
the  very  best  means  of  increasing  this  interest,  and  are  the  best  means 
of  increasing  the  number  of  pupils  taught.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Williams,  of  Connecticut:  I  agree  with  Dr.  Peet  that  exhibi- 
tions are  very  useful  in  their  way  in  awakening  an  interest  in  this 
subject.  But  I  believe  there  is  another  thing  which  serves  an  exceed- 
ingly useful  purpose  here,  as  it  does  in  other  work.  We  know  that 
buttonhole  work  is  a  most  effectual  sort  of  work,  and  that  we  must 
work  upon  individual  cases  if  we  are  going  to  work  surely  and 
effectually.  I  have  had  a  little  experience  in  looking  up  pupils, 
which  has  been  somewhat  successful,  which  was  conducted  in  this 
way:  I  found  out  from  the  census  list  that  there  was  in  New  York  a 
very  large  number  of  deaf  mutes  who  were  at  school  nowhere.  And 
I  tried  to  get  at  them,  and  had  some  success  in  this  way:  I  got  hold 
of  a  Congregational  or  Baptist  year  book,  and  wherever  I  could  locate 
an  uneducated  mute  in  any  town  I  wrote  a  personal  letter  to  the 
minister  located  there,  if  I  could  find  one;  but  if  there  was  no  min- 
ister to  be  found,  then  I  addressed  it  to  either  the  First  Selectman  of 
the  town  or  the  Chairman  of  the  School  Committee,  or  some  person 
whom  I  thought  would  take  an  interest  in  the  matter  as  a  matter  of 
Christian  benevolence;  and  I  gave  him  the  name  of  the  parents  and 
the  name  of  the  child,  and  the  age  of  the  child,  stating  the  opportunities 
that  there  were  to  give  that  child  an  education,  and  asked  him  as  a 
matter  of  Christian  benevolence  to  put  the  matter  that  I  gave  him 
into  the  hands  of  the  parents,  if  they  were  people  who  would  follow 
it  up,  or  if  they  were  those  who  would  do  or  care  nothing  about  it,  that 
they  would  individually  take  the  matter  in  hand  and  press  it  forward, 
and  use  all  the  influence  that  they  possessed  to  bring  these  children  to 
school.    And  in  that  manner,  by  individual  work,  I  have  succeeded 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  41 

in  reaching  a  great  many  pupils  that  would  not  have  been  reached  in 
any  other  way.     [Applause.] 

Dr.  Gallaudet,  of  Washington:  I  do  not  intend  to  detain  the 
convention,  or  those  who  are  doing  us  honor  by  their  presence  to-day, 
by  any  extended  remarks;  but,  I  would  like,  in  this  connection,  sim- 
ply to  allude  to  a  paper,  the  contents  of  which  I  am  familiar  with, 
which  is  to  be  presented  to  the  convention.  And  I  do  this  because  I 
feel  sure  there  are  some  persons  with  us  to-day  wThose  influence  in 
the  community  at  large,  which  is  very  valuable,  and  who  might  be 
glad  to  have  this  suggestion  made. 

The  paper,  which  is  to  be  presented  to  the  convention,  shows,  at 
some  length,  the  reasons  why  it  would  be  very  desirable,  on  grounds 
other  than  those  that  pertain  to  the  education  of  the  deaf,  to  intro- 
duce the  instruction  of  the  manual  alphabet  into  the  common  schools. 
If  that  were  done,  the  means  would  be  in  operation,  the  tendency  of 
which  would  be  to  increase  attendance  of  deaf  mutes  upon  the  schools 
for  the  deaf.  If  every  hearing  child  in  every  community  in  the  State 
were  taught  to  use  the  manual  alphabet,  and  knew  that  it  was  the 
alphabet  of  the  deaf,  we  would  have  a  great  army  of  little  people 
interested  in  their  companions  who  are  known  to  be  deaf,  and  made 
aware  that  the  education  of  such  were  possible.  In  this  way  the 
attendance  upon  the  institutions  for  the  deaf  would  be  increased,  and 
the  object  aimed  at  by  the  paper,  which  has  been  read  this  afternoon, 
be  advanced  in  the  community. 

I  merely  anticipate  very  briefly  the  suggestion  of  the  paper  which 
is  to  come  before  the  convention,  and  would  say  to  those  who  are 
present  to-day  to  bring  away  with  them,  in  their  minds,  this  sugges- 
tion, that  possibly  it  may  be  well,  in  the  multitude  of  things  that  are 
taught  to  our  children  in  the  common  schools,  to  add  this  instruction, 
which  can  be  accomplished  in  a  very  short  time,  so  that  all  may  know 
the  alphabet  of  the  deaf,  and  so  become  interested  in  the  deaf,  and 
help  to  bring  them  into  the  schools,  or  be  able  to  communicate  with 
them  after  they  have  come  out  of  the  schools,  or  with  those  who  are 
not  so  fortunate  as  to  speak  or  read  by  the  lips.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Noyes,  of  Minnesota:  I  understand  that  the  paper  which  has 
been  presented  has  for  its  object  the  securing  of  some  of  the  best 
methods  of  spreading  information  concerning  these  schools  for  the 
deaf,  and  thereby  securing  the  attendance  of  the  uneducated  deaf. 

During  the  last  twenty  years  I  have  had  a  little  experience  in  this 
line,  and  have  been  to  a  considerable  degree  successful;  and  I  desire 
to  make  two  or  three  suggestions.  Nearly  all  of  our  States  have  their 
departments  of  education  so  organized  that  there  is  one  head,  repre- 
sented most  commonly  by  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 
That  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  in  carrying  out  his  official 
duties  is  required  to  send  blanks  into  all  of  the  school  districts  of  the 
entire  State,  that  he  may  make  returns  and  statistical  reports  from 
time  to  time.  The  most  of  you  are  aware  that  children  in  a  neighbor- 
hood know  the  other  children  of  the  neighborhood  better  than  the 
adults  do.  In  other  words  a  child  in  the  public  school  will  know  if 
there  is  a  deaf  and  dumb  child  in  the  neighborhood  sooner  than  his 
father  or  his  mother.  In  perhaps  nine  cases  out  of  ten  he  will  know 
there  is  such  a  child  when  his  father  would  not  know  it.  I  could 
illustrate  that  by  numerous  examples. 

In  our  State  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  after  con- 
sultation with  me,  embodied  in  his  school  blanks  sent  from  his  office 


42  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

into  every  district  in  the  State,  a  table  in  which  the  Superintendents 
of  the  county  or  of  the  schools  were  required  to  report  to  the  Superin- 
tendent of  Public  Instruction  the  name  of  each  deaf  or  blind  child, 
and  give  his  age,  and  the  name  of  his  father  and  his  Post  Office 
address.  These  blanks  were  specially  prepared,  and  were  required  to 
be  rilled  out  and  returned  to  the  Superintendent's  office.  When  those 
reports  were  all  in  he  kindly  tabulated  the  names,  the  ages,  and  the 
Post  Office  addresses  of  all  these  children,  and  forwarded  them  to  my 
office.  That  method  alone  has  given  me  tenfold  more  reliable  infor- 
mation in  the  State  of  Minnesota  than  all  the  census  returns  that  have 
been  made  either  by  the  National  or  the  State  Government  since  that 
institution  was  founded.  More  thorough,  complete,  and  reliable  in- 
formation has  come  in  that  way  than  by  any  of  the  census  reports. 

I  would  suggest,  however,  right  here,  as  the  result  of  my  experience, 
in  order  to  save  mistakes  that  I  would  have  the  children  recorded  as 
deaf,  and  say  nothing  about  their  being  dumb,  because  some  parties 
get  the  deaf  and  the  dumb  and  the  blind  mixed  up  and  make  the 
same  child  deaf,  dumb,  and  blind  when  no  such  case  ever  occurred  in 
our  State.  I  would  recommend  that  there  be  a  statute  making  it  a 
part  of  the  duty  of  the  County  Superintendent  that  when  he  makes 
his  returns  to  the  State  officers  in  order  to  receive  his  apportionment 
of  the  State  money  for  educational  purposes,  he  should  embody  these 
statistics  concerning  the  uneducated  deaf  and  the  blind,  in  his  report. 

One  other  point.  A  few  years  ago  I  prepared  very  carefully  a  brief 
statement  concerning  the  institution,  the  work  and  the  nature  of  the 
school,  the  kind  of  education,  industrial  and  so  forth,  and  embodied 
it  in  the  form  of  a  little  leaflet  that  you  can  put  into  an  ordinary  six 
inch  envelope;  and  in  almost  every  letter  that  went  out  of  my  office 
for  the  parents,  or  into  any  part  of  the  State  I  inclosed  one  of  these 
printed  leaflets,  printed  in  our  own  printing  office  by  the  deaf.  I 
print  from  one  thousand  to  one  thousand  five  hundred  a  year,  just 
as  I  feel  I  need  them,  and  I  scatter  these  broadcast  through  the  State, 
taking  pains  to  send  them  to  the  teachers  and  County  Superintend- 
ents and  other  State  officials.  In  this  leaflet  is  a  picture  of  the  insti- 
tution, the  alphabet  we  use,  the  general  regulations,  course  of  study, 
and  so  forth.  This  has  been  of  real  service  in  spreading  information 
concerning  the  school. 

There  is  one  other  point  I  want  to  impress  upon  all  of  my  associates 
throughout  the  country,  that  these  are  emphatically  institutions  sup- 
ported by  money  that  comes  from  the  public  treasury;  and  that  every 
official  head  of  the  institutions  should  make  it  a  special  point  to 
invite  the  public — I  was  going  to  say — whether  Monday  morning 
early  or  late  Saturday  night;  let  it  be  understood  that  the  institu- 
tion is  open  to  any  citizen  or  friend  who  desires  to  make  inquiries 
about  the  school.  I  know  that  some  confine  it  to  Friday  afternoons, 
or  Thursday  afternoons.  But  I  assure  you  that  an  institution  that  is 
always  open  to  its  visitors,  showing  the  working  of  the  school,  that 
five  minutes  of  such  attention  will  impress  a  visitor  more  than  five 
columns  carefully  written  in  a  newspaper.  Let  them  come  in  and 
see  the  school.  It  may  be  they  will  discommode  you  sometimes.  If 
persons  are  allowed  to  walk  about  the  grounds  for  five  or  fifteen 
minutes,  and  are  shown  the  school-rooms,  those  visitors  go  away  and 
if  they  meet  a  deaf  and  dumb  child,  ten  chances  to  one  they  will  tell 
him  what  they  have  seen  and  know.  Let  it  be  understood  that  the 
public  has  that  privilege;  that  they  may  come  and  will  be  courteously 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  43 

received,  although  they  may  sometimes  put  very  queer  questions. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  a  public  institution,  and  they  should  receive  most 
polite  attention. 

Those  three  sources  have  helped  me  in  my  work  more  than  I  can 
properly  estimate.  I  ask  any  officer  who  is  at  the  head  of  any  school 
for  the  deaf,  to  try  this  for  a  few  years  and  see  what  is  the  result.  In 
our  State  it  has  brought  seventy-five  per  cent  of  the  deaf  and  dumb 
under  instruction. 

Mr.  Wilkinson  :  Did  you  ever  know  an  institution  where  they 
were  not  received  with  all  of  that  courtesy  which  you  speak  of? 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  have  the  names  of  institutions  in  my  mind  in  which 
notices  are  put  up  on  the  doors:  "Closed  for  repairs,"  etc.  We  say 
to  all,  "Come  in." 

Dr.  Peet:  I  am  sitting  by  the  side  of  a  gentlemen  who  has  ad- 
dressed us  eloquently  this  afternoon,  explaining  the  interest  which 
he  had  felt  when  a  member  of  the  Senate  of  the  State  of  California, 
in  the  cause  of  deaf  mute  institutions,  and  he  has  made  a  suggestion 
which  seems  to  me  novel,  important,  and  interesting,  and  I  will  be 
very  glad  if  you  will  call  upon  Senator  Whitney  to  make  that  sugges- 
tion to  our  convention. 

The  Chairman:  Will  Senator  Whitney  please  address  the  con- 
vention. 

Senator  Whitney:  Mr.  Chairman,  the  suggestion  which  I  made, 
as  a  temporary  thought  that  came  to  me,  was  this:  Of  course  these 
institutions  are  public  institutions,  like  our  public  schools,  for  the 
purpose  of  giving  the  blessing  and  benefit  of  education  to  all  the  chil- 
dren of  the  State.  I  should  judge,  from  what  I  have  heard  this  after- 
noon, that  the  difficulty  is  not  to  ascertain  and  locate  the  places  of 
residence  of  deaf  mutes  in  any  State,  for  by  means  of  the  United 
States  census,  and  the  school  census,  and  things  of  that  sort,  it  may 
always  be  ascertained  what  proportion  of  deaf  mutes  exists  in  every 
community,  and  I  dare  say  they  are  almost  always  located.  The  diffi- 
culty then  is,  not  in  ascertaining  where  the  recipients  of  the  benefits 
of  these  institutions  are  to  be  found,  but  it  is  in  getting  them  into 
the  institutions  themselves.  How,  then,  can  the  State  better  do  this 
work  than  by  having  connected  with  its  public  school  department 
one  person  under  the  employ  and  pay  of  the  State,  whose  duty  it 
shall  be  to  visit  these  children  at  their  homes,  in  their  families;  visit 
their  parents,  and  lay  before  them  the  great  benefits  which  could  be 
received  by  them  by  coming  to  these  institutions? 

Why  could  you  not  in  that  way  overcome  the  disinclination  of  a 
fond  mother  to  be  parted  from  her  daughter  or  son,  by  showing  her 
that  the  child  would  receive  greater  attention,  greater  care,  and  would 
be  infinitely  benefited  at  an  institution  of  this  class.  One  person  so 
employed  could  visit  a  large  number  of  homes,  and,  it  seems  to  me, 
could  bring  more  deaf  mutes  within  the  reach  of  the  benefits  of  such 
institutions  as  this  than  could  be  brought  about  in  any  other  manner. 
Of  course  it  implies  the  labor  of  an  educated  person  to  make  those 
suggestions,  but  it  does  seem  to  me  that  it  could  be  accomplished, 
and  would  be  worth  all  of  the  expense  that  the  State  would  thereby 
incur,  for  its  feasibility  might,  if  it  should  meet  your  approval,  be 
easily  placed  before  our  Legislature  and  our  Superintendent  of  Pub- 
lic Instruction,  and  this  object  secured  by  these  means. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  like  that  suggestion.  But  if  you  hire  a  gentleman 
and  give  him  a  good  salary,  and  pay  his  expenses,  in  a  great  many 


44  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

cases  these  families  would  infer  that  his  salary,  or  his  income,  would 
be  so  much  increased  by  every  additional  pupil  he  got  into  the  insti- 
tution. They  would  be  very  likely  to  be  suspicious  that  his  plausible 
words  and  explanations  were  that  he  might  make  money  out  of  it. 
This  plan  has  been  adopted  in  one  of  the  Western  States.  An  edu- 
cated pupil  who  had  been  at  the  institution,  and  graduated,  was  hired 
to  travel  about  the  State  and  tell  what  he  had  experienced,  what  he 
was  when  he  began,  what  training  he  had  had  there,  what  he  had 
experienced  in  the  institution,  and  to  state  to  them,  "  Here  I  am  just 
to  tell  you  what  I  have  learned  myself,"  and  in  such  cases  it  has 
worked  very  successfully.  But  if  you  employ  an  educated  gentle- 
man, or,  perhaps,  a  politician  who  wants  a  good  position,  and  send 
him  about  the  State,  you  will  not  find  the  same  results.  They  look 
with  suspicion  upon  him.  I  have  been  more  or  less  where  there 
were  deaf  children,  and  the  parents  have  treated  me  as  though  they 
thought  I  wanted  to  kidnap  their  child.  Though  I  went  there  with 
the  kindest  of  motives,  they  did  not  appreciate  a  particle  of  my  inter- 
est in  them.  But  if  I  had  shown  one  of  my  pupils,  who  could  tell 
what  he  had  seen  and  how  he  had  been  benefited,  and  the  advantages 
of  the  institution,  the  difference  would  have  been  very  great.  I  have 
known  a  pupil  to  succeed  when  I  have  failed.     [Applause.] 

Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  H.  Gallaudet  then  offered  prayer,  after  which 
the  convention  adjourned  until  to-morrow,  Friday,  July  16,  1886,  at 
two  o'clock  p.  m. 


MEETING  OF  TEACHERS  OF  THE  NORMAL  DEPARTMENT 
OF  THE  CONVENTION. 

Friday,  July  16, 1886. 

The  meeting  was  called  to  order  by  Mr.  C.  W.  Ely,  of  Maryland, 
the  Superintendent  of  the  Normal  Department. 

Prayer  was  offered  by  Rev.  W.  D.  McFarland,  of  Washington  Ter- 
ritory. 

The  Chairman:  The  first  subject  to  be  considered  is  Primary  Lan- 
guage. Mr.  Weed,  of  Philadelphia,  will  conduct  the  exercises.  The 
idea  is  to  have  set  before  us  here  the  methods  of  the  classroom — how 
we  begin,  how  we  go  on,  what  means  we  use  to  reach  the  minds  of 
our  pupils  to  illustrate  certain  things,  to  get  over  certain  difficulties; 
and  in  the  progress  of  the  discussion  it  is  expected  that  the  teachers 
present  will  ask  questions,  make  suggestions,  and  offer  remarks  from 
their  places  in  the  room.  It  is  to  be  as  informal  as  is  consistent  with 
good  order. 

Mr.  George  L.  Weed,  of  Philadelphia:  It  is  certainly  a  matter  of 
regret  that  in  the  conducting  of  this  Normal  Department,  so  practical 
in  all  its  relations  to  our  work,  we  are  not  to  have  the  benefit  of  the 
mature  judgment,  knowledge,  and  experience  of  Miss  Noyes,  who  had 
been  selected  to  conduct  this  section.  As  stated  yesterday  by  Mr.  Ely, 
this  labor  has  devolved  upon  me  almost  at  the  last  hour,  and  without 
an  opportunity  for  such  consideration  and  preparation  as  I  consider 
essential  to  the  best  conducting  of  this  department.  I  am  highly 
favored  in  having  the  same  assistants,  in  the  persons  of  Miss  Shrom 
and  Miss  Harris,  that  had  been  assigned  to  Miss  Noyes. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  45 

You  will  notice  in  the  circular  that  has  been  sent  to  the  institutions 
by  Mr.  Ely,  that  it  is  not  contemplated  that  in  this  section,  or  in  these 
sessions  of  the  Normal  Department,  extended  papers  shall  be  read. 
This  would  be  entirely  impracticable,  as  it  would  prevent  that  free 
discussion  which  is  so  necessary  to  secure  the  greatest  benefits  of  this 
exercise. 

There  have  been  some  papers  placed  in  my  hands  yesterday  and 
this  morning.  Those  which  were  placed  in  my  hands  yesterday  I 
have  looked  over,  and  have  selected  from  them  certain  passages  that 
are  suggestive  of  the  kind  of  work  that  we  want  to  consider.  The 
other  papers  will  be  considered  in  the  same  way.  This  morning  all 
that  I  shall  do  will  be  to  read  some  extracts  from  two  of  these  papers, 
suggestive  of  topics  that  we  may  consider  this  forenoon. 

I  will  first  define  what  we  understand  to  be  primary  instruction. 
This  is  included  within  the  first  three  years  of  the  school  period. 
The  intermediate  department  is  also  in  this  section,  and  we  may  con- 
sider that  as  including  the  fourth,  fifth,  and  sixth  years.  Beyond 
that  will  be  the  higher  department. 

Miss  Goode,  of  the  Illinois  institute,  in  her  paper  makes  the  fol- 
lowing suggestions:  First,  in  regard  to  action  writing,  she  says: 

When  I  began  with  my  class  of  new  pupils,  last  fall,  I  determined  to  teach  them  noth- 
ing that  they  would  have  to  unlearn  in  future  years.  If  they  wished  to  describe  any 
action  or  express  any  thought  that  would  not  be  correctly  written  in  such  language  as 
was  suited  to  them,  they  were  not  allowed  to  make  the  attempt.  I  consider  it  a  great 
mistake  to  have  the  same  action  stories  written  again  and  again  until  they  become  a  mere 
matter  of  memory.  The  principles  of  language  should  be  so  well  taught  that  the  pupil 
will  be  able  to  apply  them  in  any  combination. 

Before  I  began  to  have  my  pupils  write  stories  I  wrote  a  few  very  simple  ones  for  them 
to  memorize,  and  when  I  saw  that  their  interest  was  thoroughly  awakened,  and  their 
imagination  called  into  play,  I  suggested  that  they  should  follow  my  example.  With 
some  of  the  pupils  it  was  very  slow  and  tedious  work,  while  others  made  rapid  progress. 
All  improbable  stories  were  discarded,  no  matter  how  well  written.  I  do  not  believe  in 
allowing  a  child  to  send  home  school-room  work  for  a  letter.  If  we  begin  in  this  way  we 
shall  have  much  trouble,  as  the  habit  will  cling  to  him.  I  think  that  letter  writing  should 
be  deferred  until  the  pupil  has  been  in  school  long  enough  to  write  news  items  and  simple 
sentences,  such  as  "  I  am  well,"  "  I  love  my  mother,"  etc.  I  followed  this  plan  with  my 
class  this  year. 

In  the  place  of  journals  I  have  used  what  we  call,  in  our  institution,  news  items.  When 
the  pupils  began  this  work  they  wrote  just  a  few  disconnected  sentences,  about  things 
that  had  taken  place  out  of  school.  Soon  they  began  to  write  connected  narratives  of 
several  sentences  in  length.  This  work  is  preparatory  to  journal  writing,  and  prevents 
the  pupil's  adopting  a  set  form  of  expression.    It  insures  freshness  and  originality. 

Mr.  Weed:  The  other  paper  is  by  Mr.  Kiesel,  of  Washington,  a 
former  pupil  of  Mr.  Crouter,  in  the  Pennsylvania  institution.  I 
have  selected  a  few  passages  from  his  paper,  which  is  entitled  "  How 
to  Start  the  Child."    Mr.  Kiesel  says: 

The  grand  requisite  for  a  teacher  is  not  knowledge,  but  the  ability  to  interest  his  schol- 
ars, to  command  their  attention,  and  make  them  learn  willingly  and  eagerly  what  he 
teaches. 

To  teach  the  whole  of  the  alphabet  at  first  is  to  waste  time.  It  is  a  tiresome  and  monot- 
onous task,  and  the  pupils  will  soon  lose  their  interest  and  become  careless  and  indifferent. 

Reviewing  frequently  what  has  alreadv  been  learned  is  an  important  part  of  the  teach- 
er's work.  Cramming  the  pupil  should  be  avoided.  The  deaf  child  is  not  expected  to 
learn  in  a  single  school  year  what  a  hearing  child  has  learned  through  the  ear  in  six  or 
seven  years.  I  believe  it  is  better  to  teach  the  child  the  names  of  things  before  teaching 
anything  else. 

When  the  class  has  thoroughly  learned  several  verbs  in  the  past  tense,  I  teach  them, 
from  signs  and  pictures,  to  write  a  few  sentences  for  each  of  these  verbs,  and  also  give 
them  one  or  two  new  words  for  the  subject  of  the  verbs. 

We  should  not  be  in  a  hurry  to  introduce  new  verbs,  but  rather  show  and  teach  the  dif- 
ferent ways  the  same  verb  can  be  used  in  connection  with  the  names  of  things  already 
taught.    This  is  laying  a  foundation  for  the  writing  of  original  sentences.    As  new  verbs 


46  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

are  introduced,  be  careful  to  employ  those  that  are  most  used  in  every-day  life,  such  as 
"slept,"  "laughed,"  "cried,"  etc. 

I  have  used  the  following  method  in  teaching  the  youngest  class  the  use  of  verbs,  with 
satisfactory  results:  I  ignore  the  present  tense  entirely  for  the  first  few  months;  I  use 
verbs  of  the  past  tense  at  the  beginning,  and  when  the  class  have  learned  fifty  or  more 
verbs,  I  bring  to  my  aid  the  imperative  mood. 

A  hearing  child  does  not  know  the  rules  of  grammar  before  entering  school,  and,  in 
fact,  for  many  years  after.  Grammar  is  not  essential  to  the  acquisition  of  a  sufficient 
command  of  language  to  express  the  simple  ideas  of  young  deaf  children.  It  is  not  advis- 
able to  teach  the  rules  of  grammar  to  the  youngest*  class.  Always  teach  those  subjects 
which  will  interest  the  child  and  that  are  easily  learned. 

Mr.  Weed:  Now,  you  will  notice  that  a  number  of  topics  have  been 
suggested  by  these  two  papers  read,  and  there  are  other  topics  that  I 
know  will  be  presented,  and  so  I  have  classified  the  work  of  this 
primary  department  under  five  different  heads: 

1.  Vocabulary. 

2.  Tense. 

3.  Correction  of  mistakes. 

4.  Methods  of  review. 

5.  Exercises  most  profitable  for  primary  teaching,  such  as  writing, 
from  actions,  pictorial  teaching,  words  incorporated  into  sentences, 
stories  from  signs,  original  stories,  original  writing,  and  letter  writing. 

The  plan  is  to  take  these  topics  up  in  order,  and,  for  the  time  being, 
to  confine  our  attention  strictly  to  the  topic  under  discussion. 

The  first  of  these  is  vocabulary.  And  right  at  this  point  may  I,  as 
introductory  to  several  things  that  I  shall  have  occasion  to  say  upon 
different  days,  remark  that  what  I  shall  refer  to,  is  the  result  of  expe- 
rience with  a  single  class?  I  happen  to  have  had  the  opportunity  of 
experimenting,  by  taking  a  class  six  years  ago  that  has  been  almost 
continuous  in  its  identity  to  this  date.  That  is,  there  are  thirteen 
boys  of  almost  the  same  age,  that  have  kept  together  during  all  this 
time.  Any  one  who  has  taught  in  any  of  our  institutions,  can  appre- 
ciate the  special  advantage  that  this  has  been  to  both  teacher  and 
pupil ;  giving  an  opportunity  for  experimenting  that  no  mixed  class,  or 
class  changed  from  year  to  year,  could  afford.  One  half  of  this  class 
are  pupils  who  are  either  congenitally  deaf,  or  else  lost  their  hearing 
so  early  that  they  were  practically  so.  The  remainder  of  them  had  a 
little  language  before  they  lost  their  hearing,  but  that  language  had 
been  totally  lost  in  every  case,  and  in  several  cases  where  language 
had  been  learned,  it  was  the  German  language.  So,  whatever  advan- 
tage a  child  may  have  from  once  having  had  its  hearing,  has  been 
perceptible  throughout  the  course;  and  yet,  all  things  considered,  we 
may  take  the  ground  that  it  is  practically  a  congenital  class.  Yet,  in 
the  exercises  that  I  may  present  as  the  work  of  that  class,  both  in  the 
early  and  in  the  advanced  or  later  stage,  I  shall  be  careful  to  dis- 
criminate between  those  who  were  actually  born  deaf  and  those  who 
once  had  their  hearing,  so  that  those  who  wish  can  take  that  into 
account. 

It  has  been  my  practice,  from  the  first  day  to  the  last,  to  keep  a 
record  of  every  new  word  taught,  and  not  only  to  keep  it  myself,  but 
to  require  every  pupil  to  keep  it.  Each  pupil  has  had  his  own  vocab- 
ulary'book,  and  when  a  new  word  has  been  taught  it  is  assigned  to 
its  proper  page,  its  proper  column,  and  its  proper  line  in  that  column; 
so  that  they  have  a  set  of  books  that  correspond  in  every  particular, 
page  for  page  and  line  for  line,  with  mine. 

When  a  word  has  been  taught,  the  pupil  understands  that  he  is 
ever  after  responsible  for  the  use  of  that  word.    He  understands  that 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  47 

if  he  misuses  that  at  any  time  after  it  is  once  recorded  in  the  book, 
he  has  made  a  serious  mistake. 

Now,  you  may  be  a  little  curious  to  know  just  how  many  words  a 
pupil  will  learn  the  first  year.  As  a  rule  I  am  very  shy  of  increasing 
the  vocabulary.  I  give  a  new  word  only  when  there  is  necessity  for 
its  use.  When  the  child  has  a  new  idea,  and  wants  a  word  to  express 
it,  I  give  him  that  word,  and  when  that  word  is  once  taught  and  is 
once  put  on  his  vocabulary  record,  he  is  to  use  that  word  and  no 
other.  In  other  words,  I  entirely  discard  synonyms  in  the  first  two 
years.  Why?  I  think  if  you  will  refer  to  your  own  experience  in 
teaching,  you  will  find  that  no  small  part  of  deaf  muteisms,  so  called, 
are  caused  by  the  use  of  synonyms.  For  the  first  two  years,  and,  I 
may  say,  the  first  three  years,  I  would  never  allow  the  use  of  syno- 
nyms. The  consequence  is  that  at  the  end  of  two  years  the  composi- 
tions by  that  class  have  been,  while  not  perfect,  such  an  approxima- 
tion to  perfection  as  I  have  never  had  in  any  other  class. 

Take,  for  instance,  the  idea  of  a  child  reaching  a  place — "  Mr.  Smith 
reached  Berkeley  yesterday."  The  boy  has  that  idea  associated  with 
that  word.  He  afterwards  sees  the  expression  "  arrived,"  and  he  asks 
me  what  that  means,  and  I  tell  him,  by  signs,  that  it  means  the  same 
as  "reached."  If  he  thinks  he  has  two  words  to  express  that  idea,  of 
course,  in  showing  his  wisdom,  he  would  use  the  last  word,  and  so  he 
brings  it  in:  "I  reached  at  Berkeley  yesterday."  I  simply  ask  him 
this  question:  "  What  did  I  teach  you  to  write  to  express  that  idea?" 
He  says,  "You  told  me  the  word  'reached.7"  I  reply,  "Then  write 
'reached.'"  "But  does  not  'arrive'  mean  the  same  thing — arrived 
at?"  In  the  future  I  will  show  the  difference,  but  now,  at  this  point, 
you  must  do  just  as  I  say,  and  write  the  word  that  I  tell  you  to  express 
the  idea  of  "got  there." 

When  we  come  to  the  subject  of  past  tense,  this  matter  may  come 
up  in  another  form.  I  have  thought  it  might  be  a  matter  of  interest 
to  the  members  present  to  know  the  result  of  a  carefully  kept  account 
of  words  taught  within  the  first,  second,  and  third  year. 

The  first  year,  six  hundred  distinct  words,  no  synonyms;  the  second 
year,  five  hundred  and  two  more  words;  the  third  year,  two  hundred 
and  forty-one  more  words;  the  fourth  year,  three  hundred  and  sixty- 
one  words;  the  fifth  year,  three  hundred  and  ten  words;  the  sixth 
year,  two  hundred  and  seven  words;  the  aggregate  being  two  thousand 
two  hundred  and  twenty-one  words. 

This  is  not  including  geographical  names,  but  it  is  including  geo- 
graphical terms.  But  you  would  be  surprised,  unless  your  attention 
was  called  to  it,  to  learn  that  only  thirty-eight  words  were  essential — 
that  is  peculiar — to  the  study  of  geography.  Monteith's  Primary 
Geography  they  have  completed  by  the  end  of  the  third  year,  so  that 
the  six  hundred  and  thirty-nine  geographical  names  should  be  added 
to  the  vocabulary  of  the  third  year,  which  would  make  the  number, 
up  to  the  end  of  the  third  year,  nineteen  hundred  and  eighty-one 
words. 

I  would  here  make  a  suggestion  to  those  who  might  want  to  pre- 
serve a  record  of  the  words  that  they  have  taught.  I  first  made  a 
miscellaneous  list;  I  then  made  a  list  classified  alphabetically.  I 
found,  however,  that  even  my  classified  list  was  becoming  somewhat 
confusing,  and  so  I  took  a  small  primary  dictionary  and  began  to 
mark  the  words  taught.  Unfortunately  I  commenced  with  Allison's 
Webster's  pocket  dictionary,  which  is  exceedingly  defective,  as  it 


48  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

does  not  give  all  of  the  forms  of  the  verbs;  I  mean  the  irregular 
forms  that  a  child  needs  to  learn.  But  Worcester's  pocket  diction- 
ary is  a  perfect  model,  and  might  almost  be  taken  as  the  book  for  a 
vocabulary  for  the  deaf  and  dumb;  and  by  simply  having  the  word 
taught,  you  can  refer  to  it  at  any  time  to  refresh  your  memory. 

I  have  occupied  more  time  than  is  proper  for  this  department  in 
introducing  the  subject,  and  will  now  leave  it  to  the  convention. 

A  Member:  Do  the  numbers  upon  the  board  indicate  all  the  words 
that  the  pupils  had  learned  at  the  end  of  the  year;  that  is,  had  they 
not  learned  by  themselves  words  which  are  not  indicated  there? 

Mr.  Weed:  Yes,  sir;  they  had  picked  up  a  great  many  words,  but 
they  were  not  allowed  to  use  those  words  in  composition  writing.  In 
composition  writing  they  were  limited  to  the  words  that  I  had  taught 
them.  And  here  I  am  reminded  of  the  distinction  which  I  have 
made  between  a  writing  vocabulary  and  a  reading  vocabulary.  We 
may  confine  the  pupil  in  his  composition  to  the  writing  of  the  words 
taught,  explaining  to  him  the  meaning  of  other  words  as  he  comes 
across  them  in  reading.  I  will  illustrate  in  this  way  the  method  in 
which  history  lessons  have  been  prepared:  When  the  pupil  reaches 
his  fifth  year  he  has  completed  United  States  history.  The  last  year, 
which  is  the  sixth,  they  commence  and  half  finish  English  history. 
It  has  not  been  the  practice  to  explain  a  lesson  in  history  by  signs. 
The  theory  pursued  is  that  the  child  should  get  the  idea  of  the  his- 
tory lesson  from  the  book.  Here  are  two  or  three  pages  to  be  studied 
this  evening,  to  be  recited  to-morrow  morning.  What  is  the  prepa- 
ration necessary  for  that  study?  I  look  over  the  lesson  and  select 
those  words  and  phrases  with  which  I  know  the  class  is  not  familiar, 
and  a  new  word  is  written.  If  they  have  had  a  synonym  for  that 
word  hitherto  it  is  put  down,  and  then  they  have  the  idea.  Their 
work  in  the  evening  is,  with  this  help  of  the  explanation  of  the  new 
words  and  phrases,  to  grasp  the  ideas  and  facts  of  the  lesson.  To- 
morrow morning  the  book  they  have  been  studying  is  to  be  discarded. 
I  discourage  the  memorizing  of  a  history  lesson.  What  I  wish  them 
to  do  in  the  morning  is  to  write  in  their  own  language  the  ideas  of 
that  lesson.  Of  course  there  are  phrases  that  have  occurred  in  the 
lesson  that  they  will  have;  but  those  phrases  must  be  composed  of 
words  that  they  have  learned  before.  In  the  lesson  to-morrow  morn- 
ing they  are  not  to  write  anything  but  what  they  have  had  recorded 
in  their  vocabulary  book  or  their  book  of  phrases,  so  that  in  reading 
the  vocabulary  every  help  has  been  given  them,  and  all  of  the  ideas 
are  explained  either  by  the  words  which  have  been  put  into  the 
vocabulary  or  in  the  explanation  I  have  given  by  synonyms;  but  the 
composition  itself  must  be  in  their  own  language. 

Mr.  W.  O.  Connor:  You  avoid  the  use  of  synonyms.  Do  you  teach 
all  the  meanings  of  a  single  word?  For  instance,  take  the  word 
''reach."  You  give  it  in  the  sense  of  arriving  at  a  place;  do  you 
teach  its  meaning  in  any  other  sense? 

Mr.  Weed:  I  go  upon  the  supposition  that  the  word  "reach,"  the 
first  time  they  have  occasion  to  use  it,  is  in  the  sense  of  "arriving  at." 
Perhaps  next  week  we  shall  want  the  other  meaning  of  the  word,  and 
then  it  is  given,  and  the  two  meanings  of  the  same  word  carried  along 
ever  after.  I  teach  the  word  only  when  the  idea  calls  for  it.  If  a 
word  has  two  meanings,  I  do  not  give  the  second  meaning  until  I 
have  occasion  to  use  it. 

I  desire  to  say  here  that,  in  estimating  the  number  of  words,  if  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  49 

verb  is  regular  it  is  counted  here  as  only  one  word;  that  is,  the  words 
"  look  "  and  "  looked  "  would  be  counted  as  one  word.  But  the  words 
"saw,"  "see,"  and  "seen"  would  be  counted  as  three  words,  the  irreg- 
ular form  being  treated  as  new  words. 

A  Member:  I  think  it  would  be  of  interest  if  you  would  explain 
how  you  teach  new  words  as  they  come  up,  and  how  you  impress 
them  upon  the  minds  of  your  pupils. 

Mr.  Weed:  From  the  beginning  there  has  been  sentence  writing. 
The  first  day's  work  was  a  sentence.  "  A  boy  walked."  The  action 
was  performed,  and  those  three  words  given  and  copied  and  studied. 
The  verb  "walked"  is  the  only  verb  taught  for  several  days.  New 
nouns,  however,  are  taught  every  day  that  may  be  used  with  that  one 
verb.  "A  boy  walked  on  the  floor,"  an  enlargement  of  the  idea,  and 
an  enlargement  of  the  sentence,  introducing  a  preposition,  and  intro- 
ducing an  object  to  the  verb;  and  in  the  course  of  time,  "A  boy 
walked  on  the  floor  yesterday."  I  shall  have  occasion  to  say,  when 
the  matter  comes  up,  that  the  past  tense  was  very  strictly  adhered  to 
and  pursued  for  at  least  two  years. 

Mr.  Connor:  A  lady  member  says  to  me  that  some  of  her  little 
folks  come  to  her,  and  she  has  to  take  their  little  hands  in  her  own 
and  shape  the  letters,  to  begin  with.  How  can  you  start  them  off  the 
first  thing  in  writing  sentences? 

Mr.  Weed:  Of  course  I  write  the  sentence  first,  plainly,  and  have 
them  copy  it.  The  formation  of  the  letters  is  a  separate  matter  from 
the  word.  Those  are  the  first  letters  they  learn.  The  alphabet  was 
not  taught  before  words,  nor  was  any  vocabulary  taught  independent 
of  that  connection. 

A  Member:  How  old  were  they? 

Mr.  Weed:  The  most  of  them  were  about  ten  years  of  age  when 
they  entered. 

Miss  Wright:  What  was  the  average  intelligence  of  the  class;  was 
it,  or  not,  a  picked  class? 

Mr.  Weed:  That  is  a  very  fair  question.  The  class  at  first  con- 
sisted of  thirty  pupils.  At  the  end  of  four  months,  however,  there 
was  a  selection  made  of  twenty,  perhaps,  of  that  class  of  thirty,  and 
in  the  course  of  time  there  were  changes  in  the  class — some  taken  out 
and  others  put  in.  But  I  am  now  speaking  of  the  thirteen  who  com- 
menced together  and  who  have  kept  together;  and  this  fact  of  their 
being,  on  the  whole,  an  uncommonly  bright  class  ought  to  be  taken 
into  account.  I  would  not  pledge  myself  to  secure  the  same  results 
with  a  mixed  class  that  have  been  secured  with  this. 

A  Lady  Member:  I  would  like  to  ask  how  many  of  the  class  were 
able  to  read  themselves  when  they  came  into  the  institution.  Did 
they  know  their  own  names,  and  could  they  read  when  they  came? 

Mr.  Weed:  Three  or  four  of  them  could,  but  I  think  not  more  than 
that.  Some  of  the  congenitally  deaf  have  been  brighter  than  the 
semi-deaf,  and  have  learned  more  rapidly. 

The  Chairman:  Do  you  not  often  find  that  there  is  more  difficulty 
in  correcting  the  language,  even  the  primary  language,  of  the  semi- 
mutes  than  that  of  the  brightest  congenital  mutes? 

Mr.  Weed:  Yes,  sir. 

A  Member:  What  is  your  method  of  teaching  the  alphabet? 

Mr.  Weed:  I  have  never  taught  the  alphabet  to  such  children  until 
they  have  learned  words,  and  were  acquainted  with  all  the  letters  of 
4d 


50  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

the  alphabet.  I  have  given  them  the  order  of  the  letters;  but  at  first 
the  letters  were  not  taught  independent  of  the  words,  they  were  sim- 
ply parts  of  words.  I  think  it  is  better  to  teach  words  before  we  teach 
the  alphabet. 

A  Member:  When  do  you  teach  your  class  to  write  their  names? 

Mr.  Weed:  Very  soon  after  they  enter  the  institution,  and  I  sup- 
pose the  most  of  them  would  learn  it  in  a  day  or  two. 

A  Lady  Member:  Could  you  read  their  writing  the  first  day? 

Mr.  Weed:  Yes. 

A  Member:  Do  you  begin  by  action  reading. 

Mr.  Weed:  Yes,  sir:  action  reading,  such  as,  "The  boy  walks." 
They  get  the  idea  of  the  sentence  from  the  performance  of  the  action. 

A  Member:  Do  you  have  them  memorize  those  sentences? 

Mr.  Weed:  Yes,  sir.  I  give  them  different  sentences  with  each 
verb.  The  first  sentence  given  them  was,  "A  boy  walked."  That  was 
the  only  verb  used  for  several  days,  perhaps  a  week  or  two;  but  there 
were  new  nouns  given,  such  as,  "A  cow  walked,"  and  so  forth — the 
verb  retained,  but  the  nominative  being  new. 

A  Member:  When  do  you  begin  to  teach  the  present  tense? 

Mr.  Weed:  After  two  or  three  years,  I  think,  is  soon  enough.  The 
first  two  years  I  confine  myself  very  carefully  to  the  past  tense.  We 
will  come  to  that  topic  to-morrow. 

Mr.  Job  Williams:  I  would  like  to  ask  about  this  use  of  a  com- 
plete sentence  on  the  very  first  day.  It  seems  to  me  there  is  a  multi- 
plication of  difficulties  there;  that  is,  teaching  two  things  instead  of 
one.  A  child  comes  to  us  with  no  knowledge  of  words  whatsoever; 
he  does  not  know  the  name  of  the  chair  he  sits  in,  and  does  not  know 
the  name  of  anything  about  him.  Now,  it  seems  to  me  that  if  you 
begin  with  the  simple  idea  that  this  thing  may  be  represented  by  a 
written  word,  and  the  book  he  takes  up  may  be  represented  by  a  sin- 
gle word,  and  he  is  kept  on  that  line  for  several  days,  to  get  him 
accustomed  to  the  idea  that  an  object  may  be  represented  by  a  written 
word,  that  he  has  only  one  thing  to  think  of.  But  if  you  give,  "A  boy 
walks,"  he  has  a  compound  idea  instead  of  a  simple  one.  There  is 
the  name  of  the  object,  and  there  is  the  name  of  the  action.  I  believe 
it  is  very  important  to  begin  at  the  beginning;  not  with  any  process 
of  machinery  that  the  child  sees  or  understands,  but  with  something 
that  he  is  going  to  understand,  and  the  names  of  a  few  familiar  objects. 
Then,  after  he  has  learned  ten  or  a  dozen  nouns,  teach  him  to  put  a 
verb  with  them.  He  sees  the  difference  in  those  two  kinds  of  words. 
You  can  tell  him  that  that  one  is  a  noun  and  this  one  a  verb,  and 
somehow  or  other  he  absorbs  the  idea  that  there  is  a  distinction 
between  those  two  kinds  of  words.  There  is  the  name  word  and  the 
action  word,  and  the  child  at  once  seizes  upon  that  idea;  it  is  fixed 
clearly  in  his  mind,  and  you  keep  him  right  down  to  that  thing  until, 
by  constant  use  of  it,  he  has  absorbed  it,  without  any  explanation, 
perhaps.  It  seems  to  me  that  in  this  way  he  gets  a  clearer  and  better 
idea  of  the  sentence  than  he  can  get  in  any  other  way. 

Mr.  Weed:  Where  the  verb  is  uniform  and  the  noun  is  varied,  is 
not  it  the  same  thing  as  having  just  the  reverse  of  that — the  verb 
varied  and  the  noun  uniform? 

Mr.  Williams:  No,  sir;  you  have  two  things,  while  in  the  first 
place  you  have  but  one  thing. 

A  Member:  I  agree  with  Mr.  Weed  upon  that  point,  and  I  think 
that  he  is  following  the  method  of  nature— that  children  and  foreign- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  51 

ers  learn  phrases  and  complete  sentences  as  a  whole  before  they  dis- 
tinguish the  separate  words,  and  that  has  been  my  experience  in 
learning  a  new  language.  I  catch  the  phrase  as  a  whole,  and  am  able 
to  use  it,  before  I  can  use  the  separate  words. 

Rev.  Mr.  McFarland:  There  is  a  certain  kind  of  mechanical 
learning  that  is  received  in  that  way,  but  is  it  true  that  during  the 
first  two  years  the  average  deaf  mute,  in  attempting  to  use  his  lan- 
guage among  his  fellows,  is  more  likely  to  use  the  noun  than  anything 
else,  and  are  not  the  names  of  single  objects,  as  indicated  by  sym- 
bols, the  natural  way  for  the  deaf  mute,  who  has  no  language;  and  is 
not  the  noun  the  first  thing  fixed  upon  his  mind,  and  afterwards  the 
action  made  ? 

A  Member:  I  formerly  believed  that  the  way  to  learn  a  language, 
especially  for  a  deaf  mute,  was  to  learn  it  just  as  we  would  learn  a 
foreign  language,  in  a  natural  way.  Foreigners  learn  the  language 
by  sentences,  but  they  learn  it  through  the  ear,  and  not  through  the 
eye,  and  there  is  the  difference,  I  think.  I  used  to  think  just  the 
opposite,  but  I  have  come  to  the  conclusion  that  a  deaf  mute  is  a  deaf 
mute,  and  is  not  a  hearing  child. 

The  Chairman:  The  arithmetic  section  now  has  the  floor.  The 
exercises  will  be  conducted  by  Mr.  Booth,  of  Philadelphia. 

Mr.  F.  W.  Booth,  of  Philadelphia,  then  read  the  following  paper 
upon  the  subject  of 

ARITHMETIC. 

Ladies  and  gentlemen:  We  are  met  as  a  section  of  the  convention, 
with  the  special  subject  of  Arithmetic  for  our  consideration.  That  it 
is  an  important  subject,  will  be  conceded.  Indeed,  when  we  take  the 
future  material  welfare  of  our  pupils  into  consideration,  it  may  not 
take  second  rank  in  importance  as  a  branch  of  instruction  even  to 
language. 

The  difficulties  to  be  met  with  in  teaching  arithmetic  to  deaf  mutes, 
are  many.  We  are  here  to  show  one  another  something  of  the  meth- 
ods that  we  employ  for  overcoming  them.  I  shall  present  the  method 
which  I  have  used  in  my  own  school-room;  others,  if  time  permits, 
will  present  methods  that  they  have  used;  and  I  have  no  doubt,  if 
we  give  only  that  of  our  methods  which  we  have  tried  and  found  of 
value,  that  we  will  be  mutually  profited. 

If  I  have  any  fixed  principle  that  guides  me  in  my  work  of  teach- 
ing arithmetic,  it  is  this:  That  I  shall  at  all  times  teach  it  as  the 
science  of  numbers,  and  the  art  of  computing  them,  rather  than  the 
science  of  figures,  if  there  be  such  a  science,  and  the  art  of  combining 
them. 

The  method  that  I  have  used,  and  that  I  shall  present,  aims  to 
avoid  giving  a  merely  mechanical  skill  in  manipulating  figures — 
which  any  drill  master  may  give  in  a  comparatively  short  time— and 
centers  the  attention  and  the  thought  of  the  pupil  upon  the  numbers 
and  the  processes  with  numbers  which  figures  and  operations  with 
figures  were  devised  to  represent.  Figures  are  used — as  they  must  be 
in  teaching  deaf  mutes — but  as  little  as  possible,  and  throughout  the 
course  in  no  other  than  a  representative  capacity.  Numbers  and  the 
processes  with  numbers  are  taught  by  the  use  of  numbers. 

Figures  and  operations  with  figures  as  used  are  but  a  scaffolding, 
aiding  in  the  erection  of  the  structure,  which  is  a  knowledge  of  num- 
bers and  their  processes.    Number  exists  as  an  attribute  of  things, 


52  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

and  while  other  attributes  are  more  or  less  immediately  obvious  to 
the  senses,  as  are  color,  odor,  taste,  size,  form,  and  weight,  number  in 
its  attributive  properties  is  peculiarly  and  exceedingly  abstruse.  It 
is  a  conception,  and  is  arrived  at  through  study  of  relations  and  after 
repeated  comparisons  and  judgments. 

To  develop  the  idea  of  numbers  as  an  attribute  of  things,  as  also 
the  judgment  for  determining  numbers,  the  written  names  of  num- 
bers will  be  used  in  association  with  the  written  names  of  things  that 
enter  into  the  daily  life  of  the  pupil  in  the  school-room  and  out  of  it. 
Care  should  be  taken  that  the  pupil  does  not  learn  the  names  of 
numbers  as  a  mere  order  of  words,  or  figures  as  a  mere  order  of  char- 
acters, as  he  undoubtedly  will  if  they  are  taught  in  association  with 
an  order  of  marks  or  an  order  of  manual  signs.  Counting  should  be 
left  to  a  period  when  its  purpose  will  be  understood. 

Each  number  should  be  presented  as  a  whole,  and  as  possessing  a 
distinctive  character  and  individuality.  The  number  four  may  be 
presented  as 

o  o 
oo 
and  the  number  six  as 

ooo 
ooo 

They  are  presented  as  nearly  alike  as  it  is  possible  to  make  them, 
leaving  the  one  difference  that  exists  between  them  to  be  seen  and 
learned  as  the  characteristic,  necessary,  and  universal  difference. 
The  number  eight  would  be  presented  as 


and  the  number  nine  as 


And  so  with  all  the  numbers  from  one  to  ten. 

It  will  be  a  great  advantage  to  the  pupil  if  he  becomes  acquainted 
with  numbers  thus  in  the  beginning  as  possessing  each  a  distinctive 
character  and  individuality,  for  he  will  the  sooner  perceive  the  rela- 
tions of  numbers,  and  become  able  to  reason  with  them.  He  will  see 
eight  as  made  up  of  four  and  four,  of  six  and  two,  of  five  and  three, 
etc.  They  are  the  facts  that  give  eight  its  distinctive  character,  and 
he  will  learn  them  as  such.  They  may  not  be  reasoned  about  or 
explained;  they  must  be  seen;  and  being  seen,  they  may  become 
known. 

Figures,  when  taught,  should  be  taught  as  always  representing  each 
the  same  number.  They  should  be  learned  as  absolutely  trustworthy. 
The  figure  8,  no  matter  what  its  place  may  be,  must  be  taught  as  rep- 
resenting the  number  eight — eight  ones  of  the  same  denomination. 
The  figure  1  in  second  place  will  be  learned  as  representing  one  group 
of  ten  ones: 


() 

o 

() 

0 

0 

o 

0 

0 

b 

0 

0 

0 

() 

0 

0 

() 

() 

0   0   0   0   0 
0   0   0   0   0 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF. 

The  figure  5  in  second  place  will  represent  five  such  groups: 


53 


0 

<> 

() 

o 

0 

0 

0 

0 

<) 

0 

0 

0 

Q 

o 

0 

0 

0 

o 

<> 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

() 

0 

0 

0 

0 

() 

() 

() 

0 

() 

0 

() 

0 

0 

OOOOO 
0   0   0   0   0 


And  so  with  other  figures  in  second  place.  Ten  such  groups  make 
a  new  group,  and  the  figure  1  in  third  place  will  be  taught  as  repre- 
senting it.  Two  of  these  groups  will  be  represented  by  the  figure  2 
in  third  place.  By  associating  figures  with  quantities  in  this  way 
they  can  obtain  in  the  child's  mind  none  other  than  their  proper 
representative  significance. 

Other  devices  for  illustrating  our  system  of  notation  are  used,  the 
most  convenient,  perhaps,  is  the  one  using  splints.  The  splints  are 
bunched  in  tens;  these  tens  in  tens;  and  the  last  again  in  tens;  so 
they  are  ready  as  units  of  any  size  for  immediate  use  in  making 
problems  or  illustrating  them.  Toy  money  may  be  used — and  should 
be  used,  if  it  be  not  convenient  to  use  real  money — for  the  develop- 
ment of  problems  involving  money.  The  decimal  system  of  bunch- 
ing or  grading  is  continued,  thus  maintaining  the  trustworthiness  of 
the  figures  used,  in  their  representative  capacity. 

The  Chairman:  Do  you  mean  that  the  deaf  child  takes  in  the 
idea  of  four,  five,  and  eight,  without  doing  any  counting  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  Yes,  sir.  They  do  not  learn  to  do  any  counting  in  the 
beginning.  The  child  must  see  things  as  a  whole,  at  first,  and  after- 
wards analyze  them.  Analysis  is  a  subsequent  process.  It  will  sub- 
sequently dawn  upon  him  that  eight  is  made  of  four  and  four.  He 
will  learn  by  using  it  what  it  is  made  up  of. 

The  Chairman:  What  method  do  you  use  to  give  the  idea  of 
number  before  coming  to  counting  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  By  using  the  word  "three," for  instance, in  association 
with  objects  in  the  room,  so  that  he  can  see  its  application.  Its  mean- 
ing is  developed  by  its  use,  by  comparing  three  desks,  three  chairs, 
and  so  forth,  simply  by  using  the  word.  I  do  not  make  any  attempt 
at  explanation. 

Mr.  Gray:  Do  you  spell  or  sign  the  numbers  "1,"  "2,"  "3?" 

Mr.  Booth  :  I  would  use  my  fingers  to  show  the  "  3,"  but  I  would  not 
use  the  deaf  mute  sign  for  "3."  I  do  not  care  how  the  pupil  gets  the 
idea;  all  that  I  want  is  that  he  shall  know  the  figure  as  representing 
quantity. 

Mr.  McFarland:  Would  not  the  ball  frame  show  that,  without 
a  figure,  sign,  or  anything  else? 

Mr.  Booth:  Yes,  sir.  The  Chinese  know  arithmetic  as  a  science, 
and  practice  it  as  an  art,  without  the  use  of  figures.  If  I  can  do  any- 
thing in  this  connection  to  wipe  out  figures  and  give  the  idea  that 
arithmetic  is  the  science  of  numbers,  and  the  art  of  computing  num- 
bers, and  not  the  science  of  figures  and  the  art  of  combining  them,  it 
is  the  work  that  I  have  set  out  to  do;  to  teach  numbers  and  not  fig- 
ures. My  pupils  use  these  splints  upon  the  table  to  illustrate  their 
problems. 

I  have  other  mode  of  illustration.  The  idea  is  to  bring  into  asso- 
ciation the  figure  and  the  quantity,  and  the  quantities,  in  compar- 
ison with  and  relative  to  each  other  and  to  one  another.     I  take 


54  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

seven  of  these  splints,  and  subtract  four  from  them,  and  ask:  "How 
many  have  I  left?"  I  use  these  circular  marks,  first,  and  then  use 
objects  to  bring  out  their  use  [showing  thin,  circular  wooden  pieces]. 
You  may  have  apples  brought  into  the  school-room  and  divided  into 
halves,  quarters,  and  so  forth,  and  in  this  way  the  problems  them- 
selves will  be  presented  to  them  as  real  problems.  I  would  show  the 
apples  first,  and  different  things  in  the  room,  and  then  put  the  rings 
upon  the  board  and  teach  the  words  in  association  with  those  things 
first,  and  afterwards  teach  figures  in  association  with  those,  and  also 
in  association  with  signs,  and  have  them  use  this  as  their  own  device, 
and  after  awhile  we  will  use  the  figures  in  connection  with  these 
rings. 

I  do  not  teach  the  deaf  child  to  write  figures  very  much.  He  must 
write  figures,  because  he  must  invent  his  system  of  notation  and 
numeration,  of  necessary.  Necessity,  with  the  deaf  child,  is  the  mother 
of  invention,  and  he  must  invent,  with  my  help,  of  course,  or  an 
occasional  suggestion,  a  system  of  writing  figures,  adding,  subtracting, 
multiplying,  and  dividing.  I  leave  him  to  his  own  devices,  at  first, 
and  gradually  suggest  the  conventional  way  of  writing  and  represent- 
ing numbers  and  processes  of  numbers  [illustrating].  I  do  not  care 
what  course  you  adopt,  just  so  you  make  figures  significant  of  what 
figures  really  are. 

Thus  far  we  have  begun  teaching  notation  and  numeration.  Let 
them  learn  to  count  just  as  soon  as  they  see  the  usefulness  of  counting, 
but  do  not  begin  the  teaching  of  arithmetic  with  counting,  because 
they  get  the  mere  order  of  signs  in  association  with  a  mere  order  of 
marks,  which  are  significant  of  nothing  but  the  signs,  an  order  of 
marks  upon  the  slate. 

The  Chairman:  The  hour  having  expired,  the  further  discussion 
of  this  subject  will  be  postponed  and  the  subject  of  kindergarten 
work  will  be  taken  up  by  Mr.  Westervelt,  of  Rochester. 

Mr.  Z.  F.  Westervelt,  of  Rochester,  New  York:  At  our  institution 
in  Rochester  we  have  had  for  the  past  eight  years  a  department  called 
the  kindergarten.  I  have  here  a  printed  report  of  the  class  work 
done  in  our  school  for  the  past  year.  This  was  printed  at  the  close  of 
the  school  after  the  examinations,  or  just  as  the  school  was  closing.  I 
will  endeavor  to  take  out  from  it  such  of  the  work  as  is  peculiarly 
kindergarten,  though  in  our  classes  for  little  children  a  very  large 
part  of  the  time  is  necessarily  given  to  language  instruction  that  is 
not  peculiar  to  kindergarten  work.  It  is  very  much  like  what  is  done 
in  older  classes,  with  this  exception  perhaps,  that  it  is  all  taught  upon 
the  fingers.  With  our  young  class  very  little  work  is  done  the  first 
year  upon  the  blackboard. 

Our  classes  in  the  kindergarten  are  divided  into  A,  B,  C,  D,  and  E — 
five  classes.  The  E  class,  the  lowest  class,  have  had  during  the  past 
year  kindergarten  handy  work  exercises.  They  have  had  the  trial 
book.  These  books  are  made  of  newspapers  in  which  pictures  are 
pasted.  The  pupils  have  been  taught  to  cut  pictures  neatly,  and  to 
paste  them  properly  into  books.  These  books  are  simply  newspaper 
sheets  twelve  inches  square.  The  books  are  made  by  the  teacher  but 
the  pupils  cut  out  the  pictures  and  then  paste  them  on  to  the  pages 
of  these  newspaper  books.  This  exercise  it  is  understood  is  a  means 
by  which  some  skill  of  hands  may  be  acquired,  so  that  the  pupils  may 
be  able  to  take  up  the  more  difficult  exercises  in  time. 

The  lessons  in  sewing  patchwork  have  been  given  frequently,  and 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  55 

all  in  the  class  have  learned  to  thread  a  needle  and  tie  a  knot  and 
sew  fairly.  Some  few  of  the  very  little  ones  sew  quite  nicely.  On 
certain  days  in  the  week  the  children  have  traced  simple  outline  pict- 
ures on  tracing  paper.  These  drawings  have  been  preserved  in  books, 
which  serve  as  a  record  of  progress  which  each  of  them  have  made. 

Specimen  boxes  hold  an  important  place  in  kindergarten  work. 
Each  child  has  one  of  these  boxes  [showing],  and  in  these  boxes  they 
collect  specimen  objects,  such  as  stones,  seeds,  and  so  forth.  They  are 
collected  as  the  children  go  out  for  their  walk;  whatever  they  find 
being  picked  up  by  them.  The  child  may  pick  up  a  china  doll's 
head;  a  thing  of  beauty  but  it  is  not  a  natural  object  and  he  cannot 
put  it  into  his  collection.  They  are  limited  to  natural  objects.  The 
child  picks  up  an  object  and  asks,  "  Did  God  make  it  ?  "  And  he  is 
told  "  Yes,"  and  that  he  holds  as  a  treasure  and  puts  it  into  his  box. 
The  practice  is  to  collect  fifty  pieces  the  first  year,  while  the  children 
are  in  the  E  class.  The  second  year  they  try  to  collect  fifty  objects 
more.  It  is  quite  easy  to  collect  the  first  fifty  pieces;  but  to  collect  the 
second  fifty  is  much  harder.  Here  is  a  list  of  objects  which  the  chil- 
dren have  collected. 

They  learn  quickly  to  spell  the  names  of  these  objects,  and  as  the 
teacher  calls  for  them  they  endeavor  to  get  all  of  these  things  in  com- 
mon. They  have  little  bags  which  each  one  makes  for  himself  in 
which  they  collect  grain.  Here  is  a  bag  of  wheat.  The  bag  being 
made  of  gauze,  they  can  see  the  grain  through  it,  and  they  are  always 
ready  to  show  it. 

A  Lady  Member:  How  do  they  learn  to  spell  them  ? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Simply  by  repetition.  Every  time  a  child  takes 
up  anything  he  will  take  it  to  the  teacher,  and  look  at  him,  perhaps, 
to  know  if  that  can  be  put  into  the  box,  and  the  teacher  will  say, 
"  Yes,  God  made  it." 

A  Lady  Member:  How  does  the  teacher  communicate  with  the 
child  before  it  knows  words  ? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  By  motions  or  signs,  or  in  any  way  to  make  the 
child  understand.  But  the  child  very  quickly  learns  to  understand 
the  spelling  or  the  face.  These  children  are  the  entering  children  of 
the  school. 

A  Member:  Do  they  understand,  "Yes,  God  made  it?" 

Mr.  Westervelt:  They  understand  it  after  a  fashion.  They  have 
an  idea,  and  probably  as  much  of  an  idea  as  any  little  child  would  have 
who  is  a  year  and  a  half  old  if  its  mother  was  to  say  the  same  thing 
to  it.  He  might  get  some  glimmering  from  the  words;  but  a  child 
two  or  three  years  old  probably  does  not  understand  much  about 
God,  or  much  of  the  sentence  that  I  may  spell  to  him.  But  he  would 
understand  it  just  the  same  as  if  the  teacher  were  to  say,  "  God  made 
it."  A  little  child  cannot  understand  about  God,  we  do  not  our- 
selves. TApplause.]  So  if  he  get  the  word,  the  word  is  a  sign  with 
him,  and  it  seems  to  convey  an  impression  that  clings  to  his  mind. 

Mr.  McFarland:  Do  not  the  words  mean  "  Put  it  in  the  box." 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Yes,  sir.  But  after  a  time  he  sees  from  our  use 
of  the  word  God  that  there  is  something  else  connected  with  that 
word.  That  he  is  to  reverence  that  word,  and  consequently  he  is  to 
value  these  things.  And  I  have  known  a  child  to  cry  bitterly  because 
somebody  had  taken  a  bit  of  fur  or  a  piece  of  cotton  that  he  had  had 
for  a  long  time. 


56  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

A  Lady  Member:  At  what  age  would  you  begin  to  teach  the  chil- 
dren to  write? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  During  their  first  year  in  school.  But  our  first 
purpose  is  to  teach  them  to  recognize  and  spell  words,  and  to  spell 
them  themselves. 

A  Lady  Member:  Do  you  write  the  word  before  you  teach  them 
to  spell  it? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  No:  I  spell  it  to  them  first. 

Mr.  Ely:  Have  you  been  in  the  practice  of  putting  upon  the  wall 
short  sentences  such  as  would  be  first  needed  for  the  use  of  the  child? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  We  have  charts  in  the  dining-room  and  every- 
where. They  learn  to  recognize  words  as  words,  not  as  composed  of 
so  many  letters;  but  it  is  simply  that  form  that  they  recognize.  They 
will  go  up  to  the  board  and  point  to  that  perhaps  because  they  want 
to  get  something;  and  they  recognize  that  those  marks  there  mean 
the  thing  that  they  want  in  the  closet.  And  they  point  to  them,  not 
yet  being  able  to  read  or  spell  or  write  these  sentences  or  these  words 
upon  the  blackboard;  but  they  recognize  them, and  know  that  when 
they  point  to  them  they  get  the  objects  they  desire. 

The  Chairman:  On  these  charts  do  you  not  have  complete  sen- 
tences? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Yes,  sir;  expressing  various  wants,  like  "Please 
give  me  some  water." 

A  Lady  Member:  Do  you  allow  them  to  use  any  signs  for  "Give 
me  some  water?" 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Yes,  we  have  to;  but  very  quickly  they  find  that 
this  will  bring  it  with  more  certainty  and  positiveness.  If  there  is 
an  entire  sentence  like  "Please  give  me  some  water,"  and  they  can 
point  to  that,  anybody  will  understand  it;  even  those  who  do  not 
understand  signs  at  all.  Many  of  our  little  children  have  learned 
our  arbitrary  sign  for  water,  and  may  resort  to  that.  But  this  will 
bring  it  certainly,  because  there  is  the  sentence.  But  very  soon  they 
learn  to  spell.  We  endeavor  to  familiarize  them  with  language 
spelled  upon  the  fingers,  all  the'time  they  are  out  of  school. 

Mr.  Metcalf:  Do  you  have  your  children  collect  manufactured 
articles,  such  as  paper,  cloth,  and  such  things,  at  any  time? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  They  do  that  later.  That  would  come  in  class 
A,  in  a  more  advanced  division  of  the  kindergarten,  after  they  had 
acquired  a  more  free  use  of  language.  During  the  latter  part  of  the 
first  year  simple  facts  are  taught  to  these  boys,  such  as  refer  to  the 
objects  in  the  specimen  box:  "  The  coal  is  black."  The  children  have 
learned  twenty-five  or  thirty  sentences,  perhaps,  about  these  objects 
in  the  box,  and  spell  them  very  quickly. 

A  Lady  Member:  How  long  do  you  keep  young  children,  those 
under  six  years  of  age.  in  school? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Five  and  a  half  hours  a  day.  But  a  considera- 
ble portion  of  this  time  is  spent  in  play,  indoors  and  out,  with  their 
teachers  and  companions.  No  one  exercise  is  longer  than  twenty 
minutes. 

Mr.  Frank:  Does  the  teacher  teach  the  child  the  signs  for  cow, 
horse,  and  other  objects,  when  teaching  them  the  objects? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  No,  sir;  the  teacher  does  not  make  signs  unless 
it  is  in  conversation  with  the  pupil.  The  last  hour  in  the  afternoon, 
in  the  first  primary  class,  the  teacher  converses  with  the  little  chil- 
dren; and  this  conversation  is  in  the  child's  language;  and  any  Ian- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  57 

guage,  words,  or  pictures  are  used  that  will  entertain  the  child.  The 
teacher  uses  the  child's  signs,  or  endeavors  to  have  the  child  do  his 
own  talking  with  his  own  signs;  and  then,  when  he  has  used  the 
sign,  and  has  a  clear  idea  of  it,  the  teacher  gives  him  a  word  for  it, 
and  lets  him  make  it.  That  sign  is  used  again  and  again,  until  he 
learns  it,  and  uses  it  for  the  object  for  which  he  has  one  sign  and  the 
teacher  another  and  different  one.  He  will  talk  with  the  teacher, 
and  he  will  make  his  sign,  which,  perhaps,  is  not  understood  by  the 
teacher.  He  will  then  get  a  picture  to  show  what  he  means,  and  then 
the  teacher  spells  the  word,  such  as  "cat,"  to  the  child,  and  he  under- 
stands that  this  [spelling  the  word]  is  our  sign  for  that  animal;  and, 
after  that,  he  has  no  more  difficulty  in  recognizing  our  sign.  The 
English  word  is  just  as  good  a  sign  to  him  as  the  arbitrary  sign  that 
has  been  designed  by  teachers  of  the  deaf. 

The  class  next  above  this  in  grade,  in  special  kindergarten  work, 
have  much  the  same  work  as  in  the  class  before  described.  They 
have  to  cut  and  paste  the  pictures  into  books  made  of  white  paper, 
instead  of  newspaper.  Their  books  have  manilla  covers,  and  the 
pictures  are  more  carefully  selected.  We  send  out  to  our  friends,  and 
ask  them  for  illustrated  papers  for  them  to  cut  out,  and  we  get  adver- 
tising books. 

On  the  first  page  are  pasted  pictures  of  the  different  articles  of 
clothing.  Following  this,  are  pictures  of  tableware,  tin.  and  iron- 
ware, and  also  pictures  of  household  furniture.  Each  article,  as  the 
child  pastes  it  into  his  book,  is  numbered,  and  upon  the  manilla 
cover  is  a  list  of  the  articles  written.  Then  the  teacher  comes  to  the 
children,  and  asks  them  what  is  this?  or  holds  up  a  picture  to  the 
class,  and  asks  them  the  name  of  it.  If  they  do  not  know,  the  name 
is  on  the  cover,  and  they  can  refer  to  it  and  find  out.  Once  a  week 
this  class  has  had  lessons  in  sewing,  and  they  have  made  patchwork, 
and  fastened  their  thread,  and  sewed  over  and  over.  A  training  of 
the  fingers  has  been  accomplished  by  this  series  of  exercises,  in  news- 
paper work. 

They  have  torn  a  newspaper  of  the  width  of  a  column.  For  this 
purpose  we  desire  to  get  paper  of  good  texture,  so  that  it  will  tear,  and 
paper  that  is  well  printed,  and  white,  so  that  it  would  be  of  even* and 
uniform  appearance,  and  for  that  reason  we  have  subscribed  for 
copies  of  the  "  Home  Journal,"  as  that  is  printed  upon  the  best  paper 
that  we  could  find.  The  pupils  are  provided  with,  each,  a  quarter 
sheet  of  this  paper;  they  tear  it  into  columns,  and  each  of  the  columns 
into  squares,  tearing  enough  to  make  packages  of  twenty-five  pieces 
into  each  little  bundle  [showing  a  specimen  of  one  of  the  bundles]. 

They  are  torn  into  squares.  Now,  while  it  looks  like  a  very  easy 
thing  to  do,  if  you  will  try  it  you  will  find  it  is  quite  a  difficult  thing 
to  tear  that  paper  into  a  column,  and  then  fold  it  over,  and  cut  it  so 
as  to  make  an  exact  square.  The  child  is  taught  to  do  this  neatly, 
and  it  becomes  a  matter  of  interest,  because  they  like  occupation; 
they  enjoy  doing  this,  and  they  make  twenty-five  of  these  little 
squares,  that  are  exactly  alike.  As  these  are  piled  one  upon  another, 
they  must  be  made  of  exactly  the  same  form,  and  to  make  this  little 
bundle  of  twenty-five,  the  child  has  probably  torn  a  hundred,  and 
some  of  them  more. 

A  Member:  Do  they  count  them? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  They  do  count.  They  do  not  know  twenty-five, 
but  they  know  how  many  squares  there  are,  and  they  know  when 


58  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

they  get  enough.  They  learn  that  twenty-five  is  a  large  number. 
How  they  know  that  they  have  twenty-five  I  cannot  tell  you;  but  the 
teacher  tells  them  when  they  have,  and  they  know  when  they  have. 
They  have  also  torn  other  portions  of  the  paper  and  folded  it  into 
these  different  forms  which  I  exhibit  here  [showing].  Twenty-five 
of  these  are  also  tied  into  a  small  package. 

The  newspaper  lesson  we  value  vere  highly.  We  can  see  the  effect 
of  it  in  all  succeeding  work  in  the  kindergarten.  Economy  is  taught. 
Every  particle  of  paper  is  saved.  We  consider  how  we  can  use  the 
paper  to  the  best  advantage.  They  are  taught  that  scraps  and  bits 
must  be  taken  care  of  for  a  use  that  will  come  soon.  And  the  paper 
is  folded  with  exactness,  torn  carefully  and  neatly,  and  the  work  is 
done  entirely  with  the  fingers;  no  tools  are  used.  This  is  done  to 
teach  them  skill  of  hand.  This  teaches  neatness  and  accuracy.  They 
have  had  a  lesson  in  color,  and  can  readily  discriminate  between  the 
different  colors. 

The  class  next  above  this  in  grade  have  represented  upon  cards  the 
outlines  of  the  curvilinear  solids,  using  colored  pictures.  They  have 
finished  their  newspaper  lesson,  and  in  doing  so  they  have  made 
lamp  lighters,  large  squares  and  small  squares,  and  have  folded,  torn, 
and  cut,  and  learned  to  use  the  scissors. 

The  finishing  work  consists  of  a  package  of  twenty-five  or  fifty 
squares  folded,  twenty-five  each  way,  and  two  packages  of  lamp 
lighters.  This  is  the  first  year's  work.  The  lamp  lighters  of  the  C 
class  are  made  of  white  paper,  the  margins  of  newspapers. 

The  class  have  now  begun  the  work  of  weaving.  They  have  fin- 
ished the  weaving  shown  on  Card  No.  1  [showing],  which  consists  of 
four  strands  (?)  of  two  different  colors.  There  is  supposed  to  be  some 
connection,  and  the  child  is  led  to  see  some  connection,  between  this 
simple  form  of  a  sphere  on  the  back  of  this  card  and  the  simple 
colors. 

Classes  A  and  B,  the  more  advanced  classes,  have  woven  these  other 
mats  [showing];  and  this  has  been  done  in  dictation. 

These  dictation  exercises  are  most  interesting  and  valuable  to  the 
children.  There  is  hardly  anything  else  in  our  school  really  that  is 
more  valuable  in  the  development  of  the  children  than  working 
under  dictation.  "Put  this  end  under  that  and  over  2  and  under  2 
and  under  1  and  over  3,"  and  so  forth,  and  have  them  obliged  to 
obey  your  instructions  to  produce  it,  the  form  required;  not  being 
known  to  them  until  after  it  is  brought  out  at  the  completion  of  the 
work;  and  if  they  have  made  mistakes  and  disobeyed  your  directions 
the  whole  work  has  to  be  taken  to  pieces,  because  they  have  not  the 
same  perfect  form  which  the  teacher  had  in  mind  before  she  began 
her  lesson. 

The  class  have  also  little  books  called  "  The  Five  Necessities  of 
Life;"  that  is  a  little  book  made  of  white  paper,  on  the  first  page  of 
which  they  paste  a  picture  illustrating  the  first  necessity,  that  is  of 
breathing.  It  shows  a  boy  at  an  open  window,  supposed  to  be  there 
to  get  air.  The  teacher  then  gives  the  child  a  talk  upon  the  necessity 
of  ventilation;  that  we  must  not  be  in  a  room  that  is  too  close. 

A  Lady  Member:  How  does  the  teacher  impart  that  information 
to  them  ? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  These  are  the  A  and  B  classes,  and  they  are 
able  to  talk;  and  would  have  no  difficulty  in  understanding  simple 
sentences.    I  talk  to  them  just  as  I  would  to  any  other  little  children. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  59 

One  of  the  five  necessities  is  illustrated  on  the  next  page— the 
necessity  for  food ;  being  illustrated  by  more  pictures,  of  which  this 
little  child  has  found  four.     [Showing.] 

A  Member:  Will  you  spell  to  us  just  as  if  we  were  your  little 
children  and  illustrate  that  exercise  for  a  moment.  [Mr.  Westervelt 
does  so.] 

Miss  Black,  of  Rhode  Island:  Do  you  accompany  that  with  lan- 
guage? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  These  children  to  whom  I  would  spell  such 
sentences  as  this  could  speak  or  understand  me,  perhaps,  if  I  spoke  all 
of  this,  though,  perhaps,  not  with  the  same  certainty. 

Miss  Black:  I  understood  that  you  always  accompanied  the  sen- 
tences with  the  spoken  language? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  No,  not  simultaneously;  but  we  endeavor  to 
teach  the  children  to  speak  the  words  that  they  know  how  to  spell. 
We  do  not  speak  and  spell  at  the  same  time  always. 

Miss  Black:  Do  you  not  usually,  in  most  of  your  classes? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  No;  some  of  our  classes  recite  entirely  by  speech, 
but  the  most  of  our  classes  recite  almost  entirely  by  spelling  by  fin- 
gers. In  the  kindergarten  it  is  done  entirely  upon  the  fingers  except 
special  instances,  just  the  same  as  is  done  in  all  combined  method 
schools.  The  next  page  is  "  drink;"  and  here  are  some  cows  drinking 
water.  The  next  is  "exercise;"  and  here  are  some  children  playing. 
The  next  is  "sleep."    Those  constitute  the  five  necessities. 

Mr.  Grady:  Do  you  give  your  little  children  slates? 

Mr.  Westervelt:  The  young  pupils,  the  E  class,  use  the  slates  for 
drawing.  These  slates  are  marked  upon  one  side,  just  as  the  kinder- 
garten table  is  marked.  And  they  are  taught  by  laying  splints  and 
other  forms  to  be  drawn  upon  the  slates,  the  same  figures  as  are  laid 
upon  the  table.  The  time  for  the  consideration  of  this  subject  has 
now  expired.  I  have  given  in  this  printed  report  as  full  a  statement 
of  what  we  do  at  our  institution  as  could  be  given.  [Referring  to 
"Daily  Paper  for  Our  Little  People,"  vol.  6,  No.  40.]  Each  teacher 
has  written  a  report  of  her  own  class  work  for  each  hour;  and  these 
several  reports  have  been  combined  under  the  head  of  each  grade. 

On  motion  of  Mr.  Walker  it  was  decided  to  hold  evening  sessions 
hereafter. 

Normal  department  adjourned  until  half -past  seven  o'clock  p.  m. 


Afternoon  Session. 

President  Gillett  in  the  chair  called  the  meeting  to  order. 
Dr.  Peet  made  the  opening  prayer. 

The  minutes  of  the  last  meeting  were  read  and  approved. 
Mr.  Weston  Jenkins,  of  New  Jersey,  then  read  the  following  paper 
entitled 

APHASIA    IN   RELATION   TO   DEAFNESS. 

In  the  popular  conception,  every  person  who  is  properly  classed  as 
a  deaf  mute,  is  so  entirely  deprived  of  the  sense  of  hearing  that  even 
the  most  violent  concussions  of  the  air  can  convey  no  impression  to 
his  brain,  except  by  the  way  of  the  ordinary  non-specialized  nerves 
of  sensation.    To  him,  not  only  are  the  tones  of  the  human  voice,  the 


60  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

notes  of  music,  and  the  song  of  bird  inaudible,  but  the  roar  of  artil- 
lery and  the  crash  of  thunder  are  as  if  they  were  not;  and  he  moves 
amid  a  maddening  din  of  discordant  noises,  unconscious  of  anything 
but  profound  silence. 

It  is  needless  to  say  to  this  audience,  that  any  condition  at  all  like 
this  is  the  exception  rather  than  the  rule  among  those  who  are  brought 
under  our  care.  No  feature  in  the  prospectus  of  this  convention  has 
been  more  attractive  to  teachers  of  the  deaf  throughout  the  country, 
than  the  prominent  part  assigned  to  the  cultivation  of  hearing,  and 
we  all  hope  to  profit  largely  by  the  researches  of  those  of  our  number 
who  have  been  especially  successful  in  this  direction. 

I  suppose  that  every  head  of  a  school  for  deaf  mutes  often  has  appli- 
cation made  to  him  for  the  admission  of  pupils,  who  are  described  as 
"dumb,  but  not  deaf."  Generally,  such  pupils  are  of  enfeebled  intel- 
lect, their  disability  varying  from  absolute  idiocy  upward  to  a  mental 
condition  which  falls  just  short  of  the  activity  required  to  seize  and 
comprehend  the  complete  forms  of  spoken  language. 

In  some  cases  of  this  class,  where  the  deficiency  is  least,  consider- 
able benefit  may  be  derived  from  instruction  by  the  methods  adapted 
to  deaf  mute  pupils;  though,  probably  in  every  such  case,  better 
results  could  be  attained  in  a  school  intended  especially  for  feeble- 
minded youth. 

There  may  be  a  second  class  of  the  "  dumb,  but  not  deaf,"  consisting 
of  those  whose  vocal  organs  are  malformed,  paralyzed,  or  otherwise 
unfitted  to  produce  articulate  speech;  but,  in  my  own  experience,  I 
have  never  met  with  a  case  in  which  the  inability  to  speak  was 
demonstrably  due  to  this  cause. 

I  wish,  in  this  paper,  to  give  a  brief  account  of  a  case  which  has 
lately  come  under  my  observation,  in  which  entire  inability  to  pro- 
duce articulate  sounds  seems  to  coexist  with  the  possession  of  nor- 
mally acute  hearing,  and  yet  not  to  be  due  to  either  of  the  causes 
mentioned  above.  I  shall  venture  to  put  forth  a  hypothesis  as  to  the 
cause  of  this  inability,  which,  if  not  shown  to  be' untenable,  it  may  be 
worth  while  to  use  in  determining  the  proper  treatment  for  this  and 
other  similar  cases. 

Walter  C.  F .  a  youth  of  nineteen,  was  admitted  to  the  New  Jersey 

School  for  Deaf  Mutes  April  22,  1886.  He  was  rather  undersized  for 
his  age,  and  appeared  not  well  nourished.  His  appearance  indicated 
a  scrofulous  diathesis,  and  he  suffered  from  chorea  in  a  very  notice- 
able degree.  When  spoken  to,  or  when  his  attention  was  attracted  to 
anything,  he  uttered  loud  and  harsh  cries.  On  applying  tests  for 
hearing  it  was  evident  that  he  was  not  deaf — that  in  fact  his  hearing 
was  as  good  as  the  average.  His  inability  to  speak  being  plainly  not 
due  to  deafness,  and,  taken  together  with  his  unprepossessing  exterior, 
justified  the  presumption  that  he  was  of  a  grade  of  intelligence  too 
low  to  profit  by  instruction.  However,  I  determined  to  try  him,  and 
took  him  in  hand  myself.  To  my  surprise  he  learned  in  a  very  few 
brief  lessons  to  recognize  the  written  names  of  several  objects,  remem- 
bering them  correctly  from  one  day  to  another.  His  attempts  at 
copying,  though  they  could  not  be  called  successful,  evidently  failed 
by  reason  of  his  physical  infirmity,  and  not  because  he  lacked  the 
perception  of  form. 

I  tried  to  teach  him  the  spoken  words  for  the  objects  shown  him, 
as  door,  hat,  key.  The  sounds  evidently  awakened  no  idea  in  his 
mind,  nor  could  he  give  any  approximate  imitation  of  them.     When 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  61 

I  pointed  to  the  written  word  or  to  the  object  while  pronouncing  the 
name,  he  seemed  to  understand  that  I  meant  the  sound  as  an  equiv- 
alent of  the  writing,  but  he  could  not  learn  to  distinguish  between 
two  spoken  words. 

On  the  twenty-fifth  of  April,  he  having  been  in  the  classroom  only 
two  days,  he  unfortunately  fell  and  fractured  his  lower  jaw,  and  as 
his  recovery  was  very  slow,  and  retarded  by  complications,  he  did 
not  attend  the  sessions  of  school  again  during  the  term.  While  con- 
fined to  his  room  I  saw  him  often,  and  was  confirmed  in  my  opinion 
that  he  was  not  at  all  below  the  average  of  our  pupils  in  intelligence. 
He  rapidly  learned  to  converse  with  the  other  boys  in  signs,  and 
interested  them  by  graphic  descriptions  of  the  fishing  industries  of 
his  native  town.  Finding  him  once  looking  at  a  slate  covered  with 
writing,  I  pointed  to  him  and  then  to  the  slate,  looking  inquiringly 
at  him.  He  took  the  idea  at  once  and  smilingly  shook  his  head; 
then,  looking  around,  took  up  a  book,  and  opening  at  the  fly-leaf 
showed  me  the  owner's  name,  then  pointed  to  the  slate. 

In  trying  to  account  for  the  apparent  contradictions  in  this  case,  I 
was  reminded  of  the  phenomena  recorded  in  the  cases  of  the  some- 
what rare  disease  of  aphasia — or  loss  of  speech.  This  form  of  mental 
disease  was  first  prominently  brought  to  the  notice  of  the  medical 
profession,  as  I  believe,  about  twenty-five  years  ago — certainly  it  was 
then  for  the  first  time  known  to  the  lay  public — and  it  has  since  then 
been  carefully  studied  by  eminent  surgeons  and  biologists.  In  the 
various  forms  which  this  disease  assumes,  and  in  its  different  degrees 
of  intensity,  the  patients  may  merely  be  unable  to  recall  the  names  of 
familiar  objects,  being  forced  to  describe  them  by  circumlocution,  or 
he  may  be  unable  to  speak  intelligibly  at  all,  substituting,  perhaps, 
one  word  for  another,  or,  perhaps,  uttering  mere  gibberish.  He  may, 
at  the  same  time,  understand  what  is  said  to  him,  or  he  may  have 
lost  entirely  his  ear  for  language,  so  that  his  native  speech  falls  mean- 
ingless on  his  ear.  In  the  corresponding  way,  and  in  the  same  vary- 
ing degree,  the  ability  to  remember  and  use  written  language  may 
be  lost. 

In  all  the  phases  of  this  singular  disease,  it  is  discriminated  from 
mere  imbecility  by  the  circumstance  that  the  mind  remains  capable 
of  performing  all  its  functions  except  those  involved  in  the  under- 
standing and  the  production  of  speech.  For  instance,  the  patient 
may  be  able  to  play  a  hand  of  whist  correctly,  but  not  to  name  a 
single  card. 

The  case  of  the  young  man  described  in  this  paper  seems  to  me  to 
present  the  symptoms  which  we  should  expect  to  see  in  a  congenital 
case  of  that  form  of  aphasia  known  by  the  self-explaining  term  word 
deafness.  It  seems  evident  that  a  person  so  affected  would  be  very 
likely  to  be  classed  as  a  deaf  mute,  unless  attention  should  be  par- 
ticularly directed  to  his  ability  to  hear,  and  it  is  notorious  that  such 
attention  is  seldom  given.  Consequently,  if  this  defect  is  occasionally 
present  from  birth,  there  may  be  a  number  of  such  cases,  and  they 
may  appear,  from  time  to  time,  among  our  pupils. 

The  course  of  instruction  adapted  to  the  teaching  of  written  lan- 
guage to  deaf  mutes  should,  as  it  seems,  be  the  best  adapted  to  secure 
the  same  end  for  those  affected  with  word  deafness,  and  the  progress 
to  be  expected  should  be  the  same  in  both  cases.  The  requisition  of 
oral  language  in  such  cases  would  seem  to  be  out  of  reasonable  ex- 
pectation. 


62  PROCEEDINGS  OP  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Without  professing  that  the  facts  in  the  case  described  above 
demonstrate  the  mental  condition,  by  which  I  would  explain  them,  I 
myself  am  so  impressed  by  them  that  I  shall  always  be  more  careful 
than  I  have  hitherto  been,  before  passing  the  verdict  of  hopeless  men- 
tal imbecility  on  a  speechless  child  possessed  of  the  sense  of  hearing. 

The  Chairman:  This  paper  is  now  before  the  convention  for  con- 
sideration. 

Dr.  Peet:  The  paper  just  read  is  one  full  of  suggestions.  I  have 
under  my  instruction — I  might  say  my  personal  instruction — a  boy, 
the  child  of  very  respectable  and  intelligent  parents,  who  had  been 
sent  to  school  since  he  was  a  small  child,  and  had  private  instructors, 
in  the  hope  that  he  might  be  brought  to  a  knowledge  of  the  English 
language.  His  parents  did  not  regard  him  as  imbecile,  although  he 
could  hear  perfectly  and  obeyed  all  directions  that  were  given  to 
him,  and  yet  he  did  not  speak.  Ordinarily,  the  possession  of  hearing 
without  the  possession  of  speech  is  prima  facie  evidence  of  imbecility. 
But  his  parents  could  not  believe  that  he  was  imbecile.  Finally  they 
corresponded  with  me,  asking  my  advice  in  the  matter,  and  I  advised 
them  to  bring  him  to  me,  and  let  me  make  an  examination  of  him. 
I  was  very  soon  convinced  that  he  was  a  bright,  intelligent  boy,  whose 
faculties  had  been  somewhat  benumbed  by  the  fact  that  they  had  not 
been  exercised  in  expression.  The  boy  could  not  write  the  names  of 
objects  around  him,  and  could  not  use  sentences.  The  question, 
which  had  been  studied  very  minutely  by  physicians,  as  to  why  he 
had  lost  his  hearing,  had  been  unanswered  until  the  time  he  was 
brought  to  us.  We  attempted  at  first  to  teach  him  the  manual  alpha- 
bet, but  we  very  soon  discovered  that  there  was  a  physical  difficulty 
in  the  way  of  his  forming  the  letters;  and  on  further  examinations, 
proved  that  he  was  paralyzed  in  his  fingers  and  paralyzed  in  his 
organs  of  speech.  Every  test  that  we  subjected  him  to  led  us  to 
believe  that  paralysis  was  the  foundation  of  his  inability  to  speak. 

My  first  idea  in  attempting  to  teach  him  the  English  language  was 
to  convert  his  hand  into  a  tongue.  He  could  not  pronounce  a  single 
word,  nor  make  any  sound  except  a  most  simple  one  which  could  not 
be  combined  with  others.  We  began  by  teaching  him  when  we  gave 
him  a  word,  such  as  "pen"  for  instance,  to  give  the  letter  of  the 
manual  alphabet  which  corresponded  to  the  power  of  the  letter. 
Giving  him  the  word  "pen,"  I  simply  closed  my  lips,  it  being  a  silent 
letter  until  the  vowel  that  follows  it  gives  its  tone;  and  when  I  closed 
my  lips  I  taught  him  to  put  his  fingers  in  this  way  [giving  the 
sign];  and  he  learned  that  when  I  closed  my  lips  he  was  to  make  the 
letter  "p"  with  his  hands.  Then  I  would  give  the  short  sound  of 
"e"  and  teach  him  to  make  the  sign  for  that  sound;  and  when  I 
gave  the  sound  of  "  n"  he  would  give  with  his  hands  the  sign  for  "n." 
I  did  not  teach  him  to  spell  "pen."  But  I  would  then  say  "pen,  pen, 
pen,"  and  he  would  make  the  sign  for  those  letters.  Then,  after  hav- 
ing given  him  enough  words  to  get  all  of  the  letters  of  the  alphabet 
from  their  sounds  and  not  their  names,  I  felt  as  if  I  had  converted 
his  hand  into  a  tongue,  so  that  he  imagined  that  he  was  speaking 
when  he  made  the  manual  alphabet.  The  manual  alphabet  was  con- 
verted into  an  expression  of  the  power  of  the  letters  in  his  mind. 
Then  I  took  a  simple  reader  (Monroe's)  and  read  the  little  words  and 
the  little  sentences  by  which  the  various  sounds  of  the  English  alpha- 
bet were  developed,  and  now  he  can,  in  accordance  with  sound,  spell 
out  the  little  sentences  which  are  in  that  reader.    And,  in  reviewing, 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  63 

we  let  him  take  the  book,  and  while  the  teacher  speaks  he  spells  the 
words  right  along  for  the  whole  sentence;  and  he  understands  them. 
We  ask  him  all  sorts  of  questions.  We  ask  him  to  point  to  the  picture 
of  the  boy,  and  ask  him,  "  What  is  the  boy  doing  ?  "  He  is  unable  yet 
to  reply,  as  he  has  not  English  enough;  but  when  we  ask  him,  "Is 
the  boy  catching  the  bird?"  he  will  shake  his  head;  and  when  we 
will  ask  him,  "Is  he  shooting  the  bird?"  he  will  answer  "Yes,"  by 
signs.  When  we  tell  him  to  point  at  what  he  is  shooting  he  will 
point  to  the  bird.  When  we  ask  him,  "Is  he  shooting  the  tree?"  he 
will  answer  "No,"  by  a  sign.  So  we  ask  him  all  sorts  of  questions; 
but  he  has  not  yet  language  enough  to  reply  in  answer  to  them.  But 
we  are  developing  the  power  of  language,  converting  his  ringers  into 
a  tongue.  And  the  next  process  that  I  was  beginning  with  him  just 
as  he  was  leaving,  at  the  close  of  the  term,  was  to  have  him  write 
from  dictation  instead  of  using  the  manual  alphabet.  I  have  an  idea 
that  after  awhile  he  will  think  in  language;  that  is,  that  he  will 
associate  the  forms  of  language  with  his  fingers;  that  he  will  imagine 
himself  speaking  with  his  tongue,  so  that  instead  of  hearing  himself 
speak  he  will  feel  himself  speak  by  the  use  of  the  manual  alphabet. 

It  is  a  most  interesting  case;  one  which  I  shall  watch  very  narrowly, 
in  the  hope  of  making  some  discoveries  in  regard  to  the  best  method 
of  teaching  these  hearing  mutes;  not  imbeciles,  but  weak-minded, 
why?  On  account  of  their  original  condition?  No;  but  because 
they  have  not  had  the  power  of  expressing  their  thoughts  in  speech 
or  writing.  In  order  to  get  strength  of  mind;  in  order  to  have  power 
over  one's  faculties,  we  must  use  them.  And  that,  I  think,  is  at  the 
bottom  of  a  great  deal  of  what  is  called  imbecility;  that  they  have 
not  had  the  power  of  using  their  organs  of  speech,  and  for  that  rea- 
son their  faculties  have  been  unexercised,  and  they  are  weakened. 

And  I  would  also  say  that  I  think  that  there  are  many  points  in 
the  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  that  could  be  used  with  very 
great  benefit  in  the  instruction  of  the  feeble-minded.  And  I  am 
getting  more  and  more  of  the  opinion  that  our  methods  ought  to  be 
introduced  into  that  class  of  instruction,  and  that  it  would  be  a  very 
great  benefit  if  the  institutions  for  the  feeble-minded  were  under  the 
care  and  guidance  of  those  connected  with  the  institutions  for  the 
deaf  and  dumb.     [Applause.] 

Rev.  Gallaudet:  I  desire  to  ask  if  this  lad  uses  any  of  the  com- 
mon signs  of  the  institution?  Does  he  communicate  with  the  boys 
around  him? 

Dr.  Peet:  Yes,  sir;  he  has  picked  up  this  intercourse  very  rapidly. 

Mr.  Ely:  If  I  understand  you,  you  taught  this  boy  to  spell  from  a 
movement  of  the  lips? 

Dr.  Peet:  Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Ely:  Does  that  involve  phonetic  spelling;  or  how  did  you  get 
over  that  difficulty? 

Dr.  Peet:  This  boy  can  hear,  and  it  is  not  necessary  that  he  should 
see  my  lips  except  where  there  is  a  silent  letter.  For  instance,  if  I 
have  given  him  a  sub  tonic  letter,  not  one  of  the  mute  letters,  it  would 
not  be  necessary  for  him  to  look  at  my  lips.  But,  if  I  had  given 
him  a  word  like  "table,"  in  order  to  get  the  letter  "t,"  it  is  necessary 
for  him  to  look  at  the  position  of  my  tongue,  because  it  is  a  silent 
letter.  But,  if  1  should  say  "d,"  he  would  understand  that  that, 
being  a  subtonic  letter,  would  be  "d."  But  the  letters  "p,"  and  "t" 
are  silent,  and  in  order  that  he  might  know  the  sound  I  was  going  to 


64  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

give,  I  had  to  call  his  attention  to  the  initial  letters  of  the  words 
"table,"  and  "pen." 

Mr.  Ely:  Suppose  it  was  the  word  "photograph?" 

Dr.  Peet:  If  I  was  teaching  a  deaf  mute  to  read  the  lips,  I  should 
call  his  attention  to  the  fact  that  I  made  the  aspirate  "f  "  [illustrating]. 
I  should  spell  it  phonetically  then,  if  I  could.  .But,  with  this  boy,  I 
have  adopted  the  plan  of  teaching  him  to  give  the  true  spelling  of 
the  words;  as,  "pho"  for  pho. 

Mr.  Brooks:  My  own  judgment  is,  that  a  large  share  of  mental 
weaknesses  from  which  these  persons  suffer,  grows  out  of  physical 
infirmity,  and  that  if  you  can  cure  the  physical  infirmity  of  a  class 
of  people  who  are  mentally  wreak,  you  place  them  in  a  condition 
where  they  can  certainly  be  improved,  and  instructed  beneficially  for 
themselves  and  society. 

The  most  remarkable  institution  we  have  in  New  York  State,  was 
designed  for  the  benefit  of  what  are  called  "the  imbeciles  in  the 
State."  And  I  remember,  about  thirty  years  ago,  when  a  man  of 
large  benevolence  gathered  up  from  various  parts  of  the  State,  at 
first  some  six  or  eight  children,  which  was  the  beginning  of  what  has 
now  grown  into  a  great  public  institution.  And  of  those  children 
whom  I  first  saw,  there  was  not  mental  capacity  enough  to  put  the 
hand  inside  of  an  ordinary  barrel  hoop.  So  weak  was  the  mind,  so 
far  from  anything  like  a  concentration  on  knowledge,  that  the  child 
would  bring  his  hand  this  way  and  that,  and  by  and  by,  as  a  great 
success  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  the  hand  was  put  inside  of  the 
hoop,  and  then  the  hoop  was  reduced  finally  into  a  ring,  and  the 
mind  so  cultivated  that  a  pencil  could  be  put  through  a  small  ring. 
And  from  that  wildness  of  nature  has  grown  up  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  institutions  in  the  country,  and  the  first  one  that  was 
established  in  the  country. 

And  I  draw  from  this  the  conclusion  of  the  possibility  of  taking 
almost  any  possible  infirmity,  and  by  kindness  of  heart  in  the  cul- 
tivation of  the  mind,  so  educating  what  are  called  imbeciles,  and 
what  are  known  to  be  insane,  as  to  make  it  possible  to  make#even 
this  class  of  beings  useful  in  society. 

That  institution  has  grown,  until  now  it  has  become  one  of  the 
large  ones  of  the  State,  and  what  were  called  imbeciles  years  ago,  and 
what  were  helpless  beings  for  any  self  support,  are  now  so  conducted 
that  the  girls  and  women  of  the  institution  are  able  to  make  their 
own  dresses,  and  improve  their  own  minds;  and,  where  in  the  begin- 
ning it  was  impossible  to  put  a  hand  inside  a  hoop,  these  children 
have  gone  to  the  blackboard,  and  made,  for  the  time,  almost  as  much 
progress  in  knowledge  as  we  have  made  in  the  institutions  for  the 
instruction  of  the  deaf  and  dumb. 

Nothing  is  more  true  than  the  sentiment  of  the  poet  when  he  says, 
addressing  himself  to  everybody  occupying  a  responsible  position: 
"Canst  thou  not  minister  to  a  mind  diseased;  pluck  from  the  mem- 
ory a  rooted  sorrow;  erase  out  the  written  troubles  of  the  brain,  and 
with  some  sweet,  oblivious  antidote  cleanse  the  stuffed  bosom  of  that 
perilous  stuff  which  weighs  upon  the  heart?" 

Such  instruction  is  impossible  for  the  imbecile,  for  the  deaf  and 
dumb,  or  for  the  blind,  but  there  is  no  creature  upon  the  face  of 
God's  earth  whom  it  is  not  possible  to  improve  morally  and  phys- 
ically.   [Applause.] 

Mr.  Wilkinson:   If  I  had  known  of  this  paper  before  I  should 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  65 

have  had  one  and  possibly  two  eases  to  present  which  have  a  decided 
bearing  upon  the  discussion.  I  am  satisfied  that  what  Mr.  Brooks 
has  just  said  is  true,  that  a  great  deal  can  be  done  for  almost  every 
mind.  But  I  think  Mr.  Brooks,  and  all  of  those  who  have  had  expe- 
rience and  observation  in  the  management  of  feeble-minded  in  our 
schools,  will  say  that  there  is  a  class  that  is  beyond  the  reach  of  even 
the  most  humane  and  patient  endeavor.  Our  schools  for  the  feeble- 
minded always  have  a  large  proportion  of  children  that  they  class  as 
incurable;  with  whom  they  admit  that  they  can  do  absolutely  noth- 
ing, and  can  only  give  them  food,  drink,  clothing,  and  the  physical 
comforts,  and  wait  patiently  for  their  release  from  the  burden  of  life. 

But  there  is  another  class  that  we  have,  and  I  suppose  every  insti- 
tution for  the  deaf  and  dumb  has  had  experience  of.  It  is  a  limited 
class,  a  class  that  I  admit  I  have  seen  but  very  few  of  in  an  experience 
of  nearly  thirty  years;  who  seem  to  have  normal  intelligence,  with 
bright  face,  bright  eyes,  who  are  quick  to  learn  through  signs,  and 
yet  who  have  a  defect  of  hearing,  or  rather  an  inability  to  translate 
the  impressions  that  the  ear  receives  into  speech. 

I  am  reminded  of  an  exceedingly  interesting  case,  which  I  will 
send  for  before  this  convention  adjourns.  Some  years  ago  a  bright 
and  pretty  little  girl  came  to  me,  who  gave  no  evidence  whatever  of 
any  weakness,  physical  or  intellectual,  but  who  could  not  speak. 
She  could  hear  to  a  remarkable  degree  certain  sounds.  I  would  say 
to  her  in  a  low  tone,  "little  girl,"  and  she  would  turn  immediately; 
and  would  recognize  the  voice.  It  was  a  case  that  it  was  conceded 
that  they  could  do  nothing  with  in  the  ordinary  schools.  The  father 
had  tried  to  have  her  educated  in  the  schools  where  his  other  daugh- 
ters were  being  educated,  but  they  could  do  nothing  with  her;  and  so 
she  became  a  pupil  at  this  school.  She  has  come  to  use  language 
reasonably  well  for  a  child,  or  about  as  well  as  children  ordinarily 
do,  writes  a  very  pretty  letter,  and  learns  her  lessons  well.  And  with 
this  development  of  the  mind  has  come  also  a  development  of  speech. 
She  is  speaking  now  in  all  of  the  phraseology  that  she  has  learned, 
or  that  she  has  had  reproduced,  enough  to  make  a  decided  impres- 
sion upon  the  mind;  and  she  speaks  and  recognizes  all  of  these  words 
and  sentences  very  well,  uttered  in  a  very  low  tone  of  voice. 

The  point  I  am  reaching  is  this:  I  believe  there  is  some  sort  of 
brain  difficulty;  that  it  is  not  a  difficulty  of  the  vocal  organs  at  all; 
that  it  is  not  what  we  would  call  ordinary  weakness  of  mind.  I 
believe  it  is  a  purely  local  trouble,  something  after  the  manner  of 
aphasia,  It  has  been  pretty  wrell  ascertained  that  the  loss  of  speech 
which  sometimes  occurs  is  due  to  an  affection  to  a  certain  particular 
convolution  of  the  brain.  Whether  medical  science  will  ever  trace 
all  of  our  mental  powers  to  certain  convolutions  or  portions  of  the 
brain  I  am  not  so  sure;  but  it  seems  to  be  pretty  well  established  that 
the  power  of  speech  is  more  or  less  affected  by  the  condition  of  a  cer- 
tain convolution.  With  this  child  I  am  satisfied  that  all  of  her 
speech  has  come  from  intellectual  development.  I  do  not  think  that 
she  will  ever  have  fluent  and  perfect  speech.  She  heard  so  well  that 
it  was  thought  she  ought  not  to  be  here;  and  at  one  time  she  was 
removed  from  the  institution,  because  she  could  hear  so  well.  It  was 
thought  by  some  that  to  have  her  here  was  a  violation  of  the  law. 
But  she  was  afterwards  readmitted,  because  she  could  not  be  educated 
elsewhere. 

5d 


66  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

I  have  had  another  case  that  illustrates  an  entirely  different  condi- 
tion. It  was  a  child  who  could  hear  as  well  as  1  could ;  who  would 
obey  all  sorts  of  orders;  who  would  not  say  anything,  but  would 
answer  with  a  nod  of  the  head  almost  any  question  that  came  within 
the  province  of  his  experience;  but  a  boy  that  absolutely  nothing 
could  be  done  with.  We  labored  faithfully  with  that  child  for  three 
years;  yet  he  never  could  write  a  word  or  letter.  Finally  I  advised 
his  removal  to  the  school  for  imbeciles.  I  will  try  to  have  that  boy 
here  at  a  future  meeting  of  the  convention,  to  illustrate  those  two 
forms  of  lingual  defect. 

I  think  we  have  enough  cases  of  this  kind  coming  under  observa- 
tion in  our  institutions  to  justify  a  very  thorough  investigation  of  the 
problem  to  be  solved,  why  it  is  that  these  children  have  this  defect. 
It  is  not  always  physical.  These  are  well  nourished  children.  Their 
condition  is  not  from  need  of  care  and  attention,  but  it  is,  I  think, 
from  some  local  brain  difficulty,  the  secret  of  which  we  have  not  yet 
discovered,  but  which  is  a  worthy  object  of  investigation  by  medical 
men  generally. 

Dr.  Latham,  of  Indiana:  At  the  last  session  there  was  mentioned 
a  case  of  a  boy  coming  to  the  school,  who  was  apparently  active,  and 
learned  signs  readily  but  could  not  learn  or  write  one  single  word. 
He  could  not  speak  a  syllable  or  learn  to  write  a  word;  and  he 
remained  that  way  the  whole  term.  He  would  obey  orders  given  by 
signs,  and  do  errands,  but  not  a  word  could  he  understand  to  speak 
or  write.  And  there  was  a  case  similar  to  that,  some  years  before, 
where  a  boy  could  not  speak  or  read,  but  could  learn  very  well  to 
write  language  and  made  commendable  progress  for  two  or  three 
years.    These  cases  came  under  my  own  observation. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  A  case  came  under  my  notice  in  an  institution  in 
charge  of  the  distinguished  Dr.  Kerlin,  and  which  interested  me 
much.  I  was  crossing  through  the  corridor,  and  he  stopped  and 
spoke  to  a  boy  about  sixteen  years  of  age,  who  had  an  apron  upon 
him  and  was  painting  the  wood  work  in  the  corridor.  He  conversed 
with  the  boy,  who  answered  his  questions  very  readily  and  was 
remarkably  pleasant  and  good  natured;  and  I  also  talked  with  him 
a  few  minutes,  and  we  passed  on.  Dr.  Kerlin  said:  "  I  would  like  to 
tell  you  about  that  boy.  When  he  came  here  he  was  about  twelve 
years  of  age,  and  his  friends  informed  me  that  he  had  never  spoken, 
or  that  they  had  never  known  him  to  speak.  He  seemed  to  under- 
stand perfectly  everything  that  was  said  to  him."  The  doctor  said 
that  he  examined  him  very  carefully;  examined  his  vocal  organs, 
found  there  was  no  defect  there,  and  that  he  came  at  length  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  simple  reason  that  the  boy  did  not  speak  was  per- 
versity; that  he  would  not;  that  he  had  the  power  to  speak  evidently, 
but  would  not  use  it.  And  Dr.  Kerlin  then  told  me  the  process  by  which 
he  was  made  to  speak,  and  it  was  one  which  well  illustrates  the  very 
great  importance  of  sending  away  from  their  parents  children  who 
are  under  the  affliction  of  feeble-mindedness  in  any  degree,  because 
the  process  by  which  he  brought  this  boy  to  his  speech  was  one  which 
no  parent  would  ever  have  the  heart  to  resort  to.  It  was  the  starva- 
tion process.  The  boy  was  simply  starved  into  speech.  Dr.  Kerlin 
had  faith  that  the  boy  could  speak  if  he  would,  and  he  refused  him 
his  food  until  he  asked  for  it  orally.  The  starvation  was  carried  to  a 
certain  point,  Dr.  Kerlin  knowing  that  it  was  not  risking  his  life  or 
health,  and  at  length  the  boy  asked  for  bread  and  meat,  and  got  it; 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  67 

and  in  a  very  short  time  he  was  brought  into  the  full  use  of  his  vocal 
organs. 

I  do  not  say  that  that  process  would  prove  successful  in  every  case; 
but  it  is  well  enough  to  bear  in  mind  that  this  apparent  inability  to 
speak  is  simply  indisposition,  more  or  less. 

Mr.  Ely,  of  Maryland:  I  would  like  to  mention  a  case  that,  while 
it  is  not  precisely  in  a  line  with  the  cases  mentioned  by  Professor 
Jenkins  in  his  paper,  is  somewhat  similar.  It  occurred  when  I  was 
connected  with  the  Ohio  institution  some  years  ago,  and  illustrates 
the  condition  of  the  brain  as  affecting  the  power  of  speech. 

The  boy  was  brought  to  the  institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  at 
the  age  of  sixteen,  and  had  just  lost  his  hearing,  and,  by  a  singular 
coincidence,  his  speech  also.  Naturally,  of  course,  the  speech  would 
not  have  been  lost,  but  in  this  case  the  speech  and  hearing  were  both 
gone.  He  remained  in  the  institution  for  some  weeks  or  months, 
when  suddenly  he  was  taken  with  violent  pains  in  the  head,  and  his 
hearing  came  back  and  his  speech  was  restored,  but  he  was  blind. 
Not  only  was  he  unable  to  see,  but  his  eyes  were  closed,  and,  raising 
the  lids,  the  eyes  were  sightless.  After  recovering  from  his  illness  he 
was  transferred  to  the  institution  for  the  blind,  and  after  remaining 
there  for  some  weeks  he  was  suddenly  taken  again  with  severe  pains 
in  the  head,  and  his  sight  was  restored,  but  he  was  deaf  and  dumb. 
That  was  repeated  yet  a  third  time.  Beyond  that  I  do  not  know  the 
history  of  the  boy;  but  there  evidently  was  a  brain  affection,  trans- 
ferred perhaps  from  one  convolution  of  the  brain  to  another,  by 
which  he  was  alternately  made  blind  and  deaf  and  dumb. 

This  case  excited  considerable  attention  at  the  time,  and  was  dis- 
believed by  some  medical  experts,  one  of  whom  went  to  great  pains 
to  publish  a  long  letter  in  the  Washington  papers  ridiculing  the  whole 
idea.  But  the  facts,  are  as  I  have  stated  them,  as  can  be  witnessed  by 
many.     Dr.  Fay  can  testify  to  the  correctness  of  it. 

The  Chairman:  In  the  Illinois  institution  at  this  time  there  are 
three  such  cases  as  have  been  referred  to  here — boys  who  hear  per- 
fectly well,  but  yet  cannot  be  taught  to  speak.  They  can  be  taught 
to  read;  they  will  perform  all  errands  they  are  directed  to,  but  it  is 
impossible  to  get  them  to  speak. 

Professor  E;  A.  Fay,  of  Washington,  then  read  to  the  convention 
a  paper  entitled — 

MORTALITY   AND  VITAL  STATISTICS  OF  TEACHERS  OF  THE  DEAF. 

AVithin  recent  years  there  have  been  but  few  numbers  of  the  "An- 
nals" in  which  it  has  not  been  the  painful  duty  of  the  editor  to 
announce  the  death  of  one  or  more  loved  and  honored  members  of 
our  profession;  and  sometimes  the  obituary  notices  have  been  so 
extensive  as  to  cast  a  shadow  of  gloom  over  the  whole  issue.  As  I  was 
arranging  the  necrology  of  the  last  number  it  occurred  to  me  to  renew 
an  inquiry  which  was  proposed  thirty -four  years  ago  by  a  former  edi- 
tor of  the  "Annals,"*  but  which  was  then  left  unanswered  from  the 
want  of  data:  Are  teachers  of  the  deaf  more  liable  to  disease  and  death 
than  persons  of  other  occupations  f 

The  Mortality  and  Vital  Statistics  of  the  Tenth  Census  of  the  United 
States,  collected  and  compiled  under  the  competent  direction  of  John 

*Luzerne  Ray,  American  Annals  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  vol.  IV,  pages  154-156. 


68  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

S,  Billings,  LL.  D.,  Surgeon,  U.  S.  Army,  are  much  fuller  and  more 
complete  than  those  of  any  previous  census,  but  are  still  somewhat 
defective,  as  is  shown  by  comparing  the  returns  from  certain  States 
with  statistics  obtained  in  those  States  from  other  sources.  "The 
census  year  1880-81  was  a  fair  average  year  as  regards  mortality,"  and, 
making  due  allowance  for  the  deficiency  just  mentioned,  the  census 
returns  may  properly  be  taken  as  our  basis  of  comparison. 

Inasmuch,  however,  as  all,  or  nearly  all,  our  teachers  are  between 
twenty  and  seventy-five  years  of  age,  we  must  eliminate  from  the 
census  returns  the  statistics  of  infancy,  youth,  and  extreme  old  age, 
and  take  only  the  portion  of  the  population  which  is  of  correspond- 
ing years  with  the  subjects  of  our  inquiry.  The  total  population  of 
the  United  States  between  the  ages  of  twenty  and  seventy-five,  accord- 
ing to  the  last  census,  was  twenty-five  million  five  hundred  and  thir- 
ty-two thousand  eight  hundred  and  sixty-five,  and  the  number  of 
deaths  in  the  census  year  between  those  ages  three  hundred  and  three 
thousand  two  hundred  and  thirty-one,  giving  a  proportion  of  seven- 
teen and  nine  tenths  deaths  per  one  thousand  of  living  population.  If 
we  add  thirteen  per  cent,  which  Dr.  Billings  considers  a  fair  approx- 
imate estimate,  for  probable  deficiencies  in  the  returns,  we  have 
twenty  and  two  tenths  as  the  number  of  deaths  per  one  thousand  of 
living  population  between  the  ages  of  twenty  and  seventy-five. 

The  total  number  of  teachers  of  the  deaf  in  the  United  States  is 
very  small  for  statistical  purposes;  we  shall  therefore  obtain  more 
trustworthy  results  by  not  limiting  our  inquiry  to  a  single  year,  as  the 
census  does,  but  by  extending  it  over  as  long  a  time  as  possible.  The 
longest  time  for  which  I  have  been  able  to  obtain  accurate  statistics 
is  ten  years,  and  I  have  accordingly  taken  the  last  decennium,  1876- 
1885,  inclusive,  as  the  period  for  investigation.  Even  this  time  is  too 
short,  in  view  of  the  smallness  of  our  total  numbers,  to  allow  of  defin- 
ite conclusions;  but  the  results  reached  will  at  least  afford  some  indi- 
cations of  probability,  and  they  may  serve  as  a  starting  point  for  more 
precise  and  accurate  deductions  at  some  future  date  when  the  requis- 
ite length  of  time  shall  have  elapsed. 

The  occupations  and  mode  of  life  of  teachers  and  Principals  (or 
Superintendents)  of  schools  for  the  deaf  have  little  in  common,  and 
their  mortality  rates,  as  will  be  seen,  differ  widely;  I  shall,  therefore, 
make  a  separate  examination  for  these  two  classes.  The  Principals 
of  several  small  schools  who  have  little  or  no  assistance  in  the  school- 
room, and  whose  work  is  consequently  instruction  rather  than  super- 
intendence, are  included  among  the  teachers;  the  other  Principals 
and  Superintendents  are  considered  separately. 

The  mean  annual  number  of  teachers  (not  including  Principals) 
during  the  decennium  under  review,  was  three  hundred  and  ninety- 
five;  total  number  of  deaths,  thirty-nine;  mean  annual  number  of 
deaths,  three  and  nine  tenths,  being  at  the  rate  of  nine  and  eighty- 
seven  hundredths  deaths  per  thousand  teachers.  This  result,  giving 
a  mortality  rate  less  than  one  half  that  for  the  whole  population  of 
the  United  States  between  the  same  ages,  is  surprising;  especially 
must  it  be  so  to  those  who  have  been  wont  to  believe,  as  has  been 
maintained  by  one  or  two  writers  in  the  "Annals,"  that  the  occupa- 
tion of  deaf  mute  teaching  is  peculiarly  wearing,  both  physically  and 
mentally,  and  that  it  tends  more  than  others  to  undermine  the  vigor 
of  the  system.  It  is  true  that  the  occupation  is  a  laborious  one. 
During  the  hours  of  school  the  faithful  teacher  of  the  deaf— especially 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  69 

with  a  class  of  young  children — works  as  hard  as  any  one  can  or 
ought  in  any  kind  of  employment.  He  must  give  some  time  out  of 
school  also  to  the  preparation  of  his  lessons,  and  in  some  institutions 
to  supervisory  duties.  On  the  other  hand  his  real,  hard,  confining 
work  is,  in  most  cases,  only  for  five  hours  a  day,  more  or  less,  and 
only  on  five,  or  five  and  a  half,  days  in  the  week;  while  his  summer 
vacation  of  about  three  months  affords  him  a  much  longer  period  of 
rest  and  recreation  than  falls  to  the  lot  of  most  workers.  Our  pro- 
fession has  the  further  advantages  that  we  are  free  from  the  feverish 
excitements  and  harassing  anxieties  incident  to  the  severe  competi- 
tions and  fierce  rivalries  of  many  employments;  our  salaries,  too 
small  though  they  often  be,  are  regularly  and  promptly  paid;  we 
have  comfortable  and  healthy  homes;  we  live,  I  trust,  temperate, 
moral,  domestic  lives.  Considering  these  favorable  circumstances, 
and  remembering  that  the  census  returns  include  persons  engaged  in 
the  most  dangerous  and  unhealthy  occupations,  the  dwellers  in 
crowded  cities  and  filthy  tenement  houses,  the  inheritors  of  fatal  ten- 
dencies to  disease,  and  the  intemperate  and  vicious  who  bring  disease 
and  death  upon  themselves,  it  is  not  strange  that  our  mortality  rate 
is  below  the  average.  Still,  some  further  explanation  seems  necessary 
why  it  should  be  so  far  below.  There  are  no  data  for  the  comparison 
of  death  rates  of  different  occupations  in  the  United  States,  but  in 
England,  where  statistics  of  this  kind  have  been  collected,  no  occu- 
pation has  a  rate  of  mortality  so  low  as  ours.  The  nearest  approach 
to  it,  according  to  the  latest  returns  on  the  subject,*  is  that  of  clergy- 
men, who  have  ten  and  twenty-eight  hundredths  deaths  per  thou- 
sand living  between  the  ages  of  twenty-five  and  sixty-five;  between 
the  ages  of  twenty  and  seventy-five  the  number  would  be  con- 
siderably higher,  on  account  of  the  large  increase  in  the  proportion 
of  deaths  between  the  ages  of  sixty-five  and  seventy-five.  Next  to 
clergymen,  in  England,  agriculturists  enjoy  the  lowest  death  rate; 
schoolmasters  rank  fifth  on  the  list,  having  a  rate  of  thirteen  and 
twelve  hundredths  per  thousand  living  between  the  ages  of  twenty- 
five  and  sixty-five.  The  death  rate  for  all  males  in  England  between 
those  ages  is  seventeen  and  seventy-two  hundredths  per  thousand 
living. 

Dr.  Billings  in  conversation  has  suggested  to  me  one  fact  which 
vitiates  the  results  of  the  mortality  statistics  of  school  teachers  gener- 
ally, viz.:  that  many  teachers  do  not  remain  in  the  work  per- 
manently, but  abandon  it  for  other  occupations.  This  does  not  apply 
so  much  to  teachers  of  the  deaf;  and,  moreover,  our  returns  include 
all  deaths,  within  the  past  ten  years,  of  persons  who  have  been  teach- 
ers of  the  deaf  at  any  time  within  that  period,  even  though  they  may 
have  retired  from  the  profession  some  years  before  their  death. 

Possibly,  however,  the  extreme  lowness  of  our  death  rate  is  due  to 
the  probable  fact  that  the  mean  average  age  of  our  living  teachers  is 
less  than  the  mean  average  age  of  the  general  population  between  the 
ages  of  twenty  and  seventy-five;  for  it  is  a  universal  rule  that  the 
death  rate  of  any  group  of  adults  increases  with  its  mean  average  age. 
Unfortunately  I  have  no  statistics  of  the  ages  of  our  living  teachers; 
but  inasmuch  as  our  numbers  have  increased  rapidly  with  the  growth 


*  William  Ogle,  M.D.,  Supplement  to  the  Forty-fifth  Annual  Report  of  the  Registrar- 
General  of  Births,  Deaths,  and  Marriages  in  England.    London:  Eyre  &  Spottiswoode, 

1885. 


70  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

of  our  schools  within  the  last  thirty  years,  rising  from  seventy-five  in 
1857  to  four  hundred  and  seventy-six  in  1885,  and  the  additions  to 
our  ranks  have  consisted  chiefly  of  young  men  and  women,  it  is  prob- 
able that  our  mean  average  age  is  now  less  than  that  of  the  general 
population  between  the  same  extremes  of  age.  I  hope  at  some  future 
time  to  obtain  statistics  of  the  ages  of  our  living  teachers,  that  we  may 
know  what  proportion  of  our  exceptionally  low  death  rate  is  due  to 
the  nature  of  our  work,  and  what  to  the  exceptional  lowness  of  our 
mean  average  age. 

Of  the  causes  of  death  I  have  returns  in  thirty-seven  cases,  as 
follows: 

Dysentery - - --- - 

Enteritis -- - 1 

Malarial  fever.. - - 2 

Typhoid  fever -  - 2 

Debility.... - 1 

Old  age. - --- 4 

Consumption - 10 

Cancer - --- 3 

Tumor --  1 

Cerebral  meningitis - -- -  1 

Apoplexy 1 

Congestion  of  the  heart --  - - 1 

Pneumonia - --- 4 

Calculus - 1 

Necrosis  of  the  skull 1 

Eczema  ._ - 1 

Suicide. 1 

Total ---37 

One  case,  also,  is  reported  of  death  "from  a  complication  of  physi- 
cal maladies,  aggravated  by  hard  school-room  work." 

The  only  one  of  these  diseases  that  calls  for  special  notice  is  con- 
sumption, the  ten  cases  of  which  form  an  unusually  large  proportion 
of  the  whole  number.  The  proportion  of  deaths  assigned  to  this  dis- 
ease in  the  United  States  census  returns  was  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
six  and  sixty-two  hundredths  per  one  thousand  total  deaths;  and 
that  included  the  deaths  at  all  ages.  Our  statistics  give  a  proportion 
of  two  hundred  and  fifty  per  one  thousand  deaths  between  the  ages 
of  twenty  and  seventy-five.  No  doubt  this  large  proportion  is  partly 
due  to  the  fact  that  there  are  some  diseases  causing  many  deaths  in 
the  general  population,  as  for  instance  those  resulting  from  the  alco- 
holic habit  and  those  connected  with  maternity,  from  which  teachers 
of  the  deaf  are  almost  if  not  entirely  exempt;  but  this  is  proba- 
bly not  sufficient  to  account  for  it  wholly.  May  it  not  be  that  the 
inhalation  of  crayon  dust  is  one  cause  of  the  large  number  of  deaths 
from  consumption.  English  statistics  show  that  of  persons  engaged 
in  dust-inhaling  occupations — such  as  workers  in  cotton  and  woolen 
factories,  cutlers  and  file  makers,  stone  masons  and  bricklayers,  Cor- 
nish miners  and  pottery  makers — a  much  larger  proportion  die  of 
consumption  and  diseases  of  the  respiratory  organs  than  of  the  gen- 
eral population.  Mineral  dust,  especially  the  dust  of  stone,  is  pecu- 
liarly fatal.  Among  Cornish  miners  and  pottery  makers  the  mortality 
from  lung  diseases  is  almost  three  times  as  great  as  among  average 
males,  and  it  is  five  or  six  times  as  great  as  among  fishermen,  who  are 
free  from  exposure  to  dust.  For  workers  in  chalk  we  have  no  returns; 
probably  chalk  dust,  being  softer  and  more  rounded,  is  less  deleterious 
than  some  other  kinds  of  mineral  dust,  but  it  is  hard  and  gritty 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  71 

enough  to  be  irritating  to  weak  lungs,  and  there  is  often  a  good  deal 
of  it  floating  in  our  school-rooms.  Slate  or  lead  pencils  should  be 
used  in  preference  to  chalk  whenever  feasible.  Since  crayons  cannot 
be  dispensed  with  altogether,  those  kinds  should  be  chosen  which  are 
least  productive  of  dust;  crayon  writing  should  be  erased  carefully 
and  gently,  and  at  recess  or  after  school  rather  than  during  school 
hours,  and  erasers,  by  frequent  cleansing  in  the  open  air,  should  be 
kept  as  free  from  dust  as  possible. 

I  have  the  ages  of  thirty-eight  of  the  thirty-nine  who  have  died. 
The  two  youngest  were  twenty-one  years  of  age;  the  three  oldest, 
seventy -four;  the  mean  average  age  was  forty -four. 

I  have  also  obtained  statistics  of  the  teachers  who  during  this 
decennium  have  retired  from  the  work  of  deaf  mute  instruction  tem- 
porarily or  permanently  on  account  of  ill  health.  They  are  thirty- 
three  in  number,  and  the  causes  of  their  retirement  in  thirty-one 
cases  are  as  follows; 

Nervous  prostration . . 8 

Consumption  _ _  6 

Weakness  of  lungs 3 

General  debility 3 

Accidents 3 

Old  age 3 

Insomnia . 2 

Insanity 1 

Cancer 1 

Rheumatism 1 

Total 31 

Nine  of  these  have  since  died,  and  eight  of  them  are  included  in  the 
statistics  of  death  above  given;  the  ninth  died  during  the  year  1886, 
which  does  not  come  within  the  period  of  investigation.  Thirteen 
have  recovered,  and  of  these  ten  have  returned  to  the  work  after  a 
rest  of  from  two  months  to  two  years.  Three  are  still  invalids. 
With  respect  to  the  remaining  nine,  I  am  not  informed  of  their  pres- 
ent state  of  health.  Five  of  the  thirty-three  were  in  delicate  health, 
one  of  them  a  confirmed  invalid,  when  they  began  teaching.  The 
nervous  prostration  of  three  of  the  eight  thus  afflicted  is  attributed  to 
overwork  in  teaching.  One  case  of  insomnia,  which  resulted  in  sui- 
cide, was  due  to  overwork  outside  of  the  school-room,  in  a  direction 
entirely  apart  from  that  of  the  profession.  In  the  case  of  the  one  who 
became  insane,  the  disease  was  hereditary.  The  three  accidents  had 
no  connection  with  the  duties  of  instruction  nor  with  institution  life. 

We  have  no  statistics  whatever  of  other  occupations  with  which  to 
compare  these  cases  of  retirement  from  work  temporarily  or  perma- 
nently on  account  of  ill  health,  but  we  know  that  in  all  occupations 
there  are  many  such  instances.  While  their  occurrence  among 
teachers  of  the  deaf  illustrates  the  truth  that  it  is  impossible  for  one 
to  continue  in  the  work  who  does  not  enjoy  good  health,  they  are 
probably  not  sufficiently  numerous  to  indicate  that  the  profession  is 
unhealthy  or  peculiarly  wearing  to  the  nervous  system. 

The  mean  annual  number  of  male  teachers  was  one  hundred  and 
sixty-eight;  of  female  teachers,  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven.  The 
number  of  male  deaths  was  twenty-four,  which  is  at  the  annual  rate 
of  fourteen  and  twenty-eight  hundredths  per  one  thousand  living; 
the  number  of  female  deaths  was  fifteen,  or  six  and  seventy-eight 
hundredths  per  one  thousand  living.    This  gives  a  very  much  higher 


72  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

death  rate  for  male  than  for  female  teachers;  but  the  difference  is 
perhaps  to  be  explained,  to  a  considerable  extent,  by  the  fact  that  the 
average  age  of  living  male  teachers  is  probably  greater  than  that  of 
female  teachers.  As  already  stated,  I  have  no  statistics  of  the  ages  of 
our  living  teachers;  but  inasmuch  as  the  employment  of  ladies  in  the 
work  has  only  recently  become  common,  their  average  age  is  proba- 
bly considerably  less  than  that  of  the  male  teachers.  The  steady 
increase  in  the  proportion  of  lady  teachers  since  1851  is  shown  by  the 
following  table: 


Year. 

Number  of 
Male  Teachers. 

Number  of 
Female  Teachers. 

1851                  -  

49 

61 

93 

139 

176 

3 

1857. 

11 

1868  .               

50 

1875 - 

134 

1885  .       

300 

The  average  age  of  the  male  teachers  at  the  time  of  death  was  fifty- 
three;  of  the  female  teachers  it  was  thirty-one.  If  there  is  as  much 
difference  in  the  average  ages  of  the  living  male  and  female  teachers 
it  is,  perhaps,  sufficient  to  account  for  the  difference  in  the  death  rates. 

The  number  of  male  teachers  who  gave  up  teaching  temporarily  or 
permanently  on  account  of  ill  health  was  ten;  of  female  teachers, 
twenty-three;  indicating  that  a  smaller  proportion  of  women  than  of 
men  find  their  health  and  strength  equal  to  the  work.  The  three 
cases  of  accidents,  however,  and  four  of  those  who  were  in  delicate 
health  when  they  began  teaching,  were  ladies.  If  we  deduct  these 
seven  from  the  twenty-three,  the  numbers  are  rendered  more  nearly 
equal,  though  considerable  disparity  still  remains. 

The  mean  annual  number  of  deaf  teachers  was  one  hundred  and 
thirty-two;  total  number  of  deaths,  fourteen;  annual  proportion  of 
deaths  per  one  thousand  living,  ten  and  sixty-six  one  hundredths. 
This  is  a  slightly  higher  death  rate  than  that  of  the  hearing  teachers, 
which  is  nine  and  five  tenths,  but  it  is  very  much  lower  than  that  of 
the  whole  population  of  the  United  States  for  the  same  ages;  and,  so 
far  as  it  goes,  indicates  that  those  life  insurance  companies  which 
decline  to  insure  the  deaf,  on  the  ground  of  their  greater  liability 
than  the  rest  of  the  community  to  accident  and  disease,  are  in  error. 
The  average  age  of  the  deaf  teachers  who  died  was  forty-one.  The 
number  of  deaf  teachers  who  gave  up  the  work  temporarily  or  perma- 
nently on  account  of  ill  health  was  only  three;  a  very  much  smaller 
proportion  than  that  of  hearing  teachers.  The  causes  of  the  deaths 
of  thirteen  deaf  teachers  were  as  follows: 

Dysentery i 

Enteritis 1 

Debility 1 

Consumption ___, 4 

Cancer '_  2 

Pneumonia 2 

Calculus 1 

Necrosis  of  the  skull " i 

Total 7l3 

If  we  had  the  requisite  data,  it  would  be  interesting  to  determine 
whether,  as  has  been  on  the  one  hand  asserted,  and  on  the  other  con- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  73 

troverted,  in  the  "Annals,"  the  work  of  articulation  teaching  is  more 
laborious  and  wearing  than  teaching  by  the  manual  method.  Unfor- 
tunately there  are  no  statistics  to  show  exactly  the  mean  average 
number  of  articulation  teachers  during  the  decennium.  We  learn 
from  the  tabular  statement  prepared  by  Miss  Rogers,  and  published 
in  the  Sixteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Clarke  Institution,  that  in 
1876,  the  first  year  of  our  period  of  inquiry,  there  were  not  more  than 
seventy-eight  articulation  teachers,  and  probably  the  number  \wi>  Less 
than  that.  In  1883,  according  to  the  same  authority,  there  were  one 
hundred  and  twelve.  In  1885,  estimating  from  the  number  of  pupils 
taught  articulation,  there  were  one  hundred  and  thirty -fourl  Prob- 
ably one  hundred  is  not  far  from  the  mean  average  number  for  the 
decennium.  There  were  five  deaths  of  articulation  teachers,  giving 
the  extremely  low  annual  death  rate  of  five  per  one  thousand  living — 
a  rate  less  than  one  half  that  of  the  manual  teachers,  which  is  eleven 
and  eighty-seven  one  hundredths,  and  one  fourth  that  of  the  whole 
population  of  the  United  States.  Articulation  teaching  may  be  weari- 
some, but  according  to  these  statistics  it  cannot  be  regarded  as  fatal.* 
It  should  be  remembered,  however,  that  oral  teaching  is  compara- 
tively a  recent  work  in  this  country,  and  that  the  mean  average  age 
of  articulation  teachers  is  probably  less  than  that  of  any  other  group 
under  consideration. 

Of  the  thirty-three  teachers  who  retired  from  the  work  temporarily 
or  permanently  on  account  of  ill  health,  twelve  were  articulation 
teachers,  apparently  a  large  proportion ;  but  among  them  are  included 
the  three  cases  of  accidents,  two  who  were  invalids  when  they  began 
teaching,  and  one  who  became  ill  from  a  cause  that  had  nothing  to 
do  with  the  school-room.  If  we  deduct  these  six,  the  proportion 
remains  nearly  the  same  as  that  of  the  manual  teachers. 

We  now  come  to  the  Principals  and  Superintendents  of  our  schools 
for  the  deaf,  and  here,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  I  have  no  longer  pleasant 
and  reassuring  statistics  to  offer.  The  mean  annual  number  of  Prin- 
cipals and  Superintendents  was  forty-nine;  total  number  of  deaths, 
fourteen;  annual  number  of  deaths  per  thousand  living,  twenty- 
eight  and  fifty-seven  hundredths,  a  proportion  more  than  two  and 
a  half  times  as  large  as  that  of  our  teachers,  considerably  larger  than 
that  of  the  whole  population  of  the  United  States;  and  surpassed  in 
the  English  statistics  only  by  those  of  the  most  unhealthy  and  deadly 
employments.  The  only  consoling  circumstance  I  can  suggest  is  the 
untrustworthiness  of  all  deductions  drawn  from  such  small  numbers. 
I  hope  and  trust  the  statistics  of  the  future  will  show  a  much  lower 
rate.  Still,  I  do  not  think  it  can  be  expected  to  approach  that  of  the 
teachers  in  lowness,  for  the  duties  of  the  office  make  a  much  severer 
demand  upon  the  vital  powers.  The  Principal  is  and  ought  to  be 
responsible  for  the  intellectual,  moral,  and  industrial  training  of  the 
pupils;  their  care  and  treatment  in  health  and  in  sickness;  the  selec- 
tion of  teachers  and  other  officers;  the  representation  of  the  insti- 
tution before  the  public,  and  the  obtaining  of  means  for  its  support 
from  the  Legislature;  the  correspondence  with  the  parents  of  pupils 
and  others,  including  the  statistic  fiends  of  the  Bureau  of  Educa- 

*  Since  this  paper  was  read  I  have  been  informed  that  in  the  case  of  one  articulation 
teacher,  the  cause  of  death,  as  given  for  official  record  by  the  physician  in  attendance, 
was  "brain  fever  and  paralysis  of  the  throat,  caused  by  overwork  in  teaching  articula- 
tion." The  cause  of  death  named  to  me  in  the  first  instance  was  "cerebro-spinal  menin- 
gitis," and  it  is  so  recorded  in  the  foregoing  tables.— E.  A.  F. 


4  PROCEEDINGS    OF    THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 


tion,  the  Census  Office,  and  the  "Annals;"  the  petty  and  vexatious 
details  of  daily  administration;  and  many  other  items  too  numer- 
ous, perhaps  too  trivial,  to  mention,  but  which  taken  altogether 
impair  his  strength  and  wear  away  his  life.  Happy,  too,  are  the 
Principals  who  escape  wholly  the  jealousies  and  rivalries  of  subor- 
dinates; the  suspicions  and  interferences  of  individuals  in  the  Board 
of  Management;  unjust  censure  from  the  public  press;  unfair  investi- 
gation: cruel  condemnation,  or  unsatisfactory  vindication.  All  these 
things  make  up  a  burden  of  responsibility  and  anxiety  which  few 
men  have  the  strength  to  carry  for  a  long  time.  The  wear  and  tear 
of  such  a  life  is  too  great;  the  vitality  becomes  exhausted;  disease 
and  death  find  an  easy  conquest.  Perhaps  the  case  is  one  that  admits 
of  no  remedy;  still  I  venture  to  make  a  few  suggestions  which,  if 
followed,  would,  I  think,  tend  to  lower  the  death  rate  of  Principals. 

1.  Let  no  person  accept  the  office  who  does  not  possess  an  unusually 
strong  constitution. 

2.  Let  the  Principal  refuse  to  be  annoyed  with  unnecessary  petty 
details.  Why,  for  instance,  should  he  sell  postage  stamps  to  teachers, 
when  they  can  be  bought  at  the  same  price  at  the  Post  Office,  and  a 
walk  thither  is  just  what  we  all  need  for  our  health  before  or  after 
school? 

3.  Let  him,  when  he  begins  to  be  weary — nay,  sometimes  without 
waiting  for  that — even  in  term  time,  take  an  entire  rest  for  days  or 
weeks  from  his  usual  duties,  and  in  change  of  scene  and  life  recruit 
his  health  and  strength ;  and  to  this  end  let  him  have  among  his 
assistants  at  least  one  person  who,  possessing  his  entire  confidence 
and  being  otherwise  well  qualified,  can  take  his  place;  so  that,  during 
his  absence,  with  a  little  unusual  help  perhaps  from  the  other  officers, 
the  wheels  of  the  ordinary  routine  will  move  almost  as  smoothly  as 
when  he  is  at  home. 

4.  Let  the  Principal  have  a  residence,  or  at  least  a  dining-room, 
separate  from  that  of  the  institution.  His  presence  in  the  pupils' 
dining-room  at  certain  times  is  doubtless  desirable,  but  let  him  take 
his  own  meals  with  his  own  family  in  peace  and  quiet.  This  may 
seem  a  little  thing,  but  its  importance  cannot  be  overestimated. 

The  causes  of  the  deaths  of  twelve  Superintendents  and  Principals 
were: 

Erysipelas ._ 1 

Consumption 2 

Cancer -_ 1 

Apoplexy 1 

Paralysis 1 

Congestion  of  the  brain 1 

Pneumonia ,3 

Disease  of  the  kidneys ' 2 

Total x 12 

The  mean  average  age  of  ten  of  the  Principals  who  died  was  forty- 
nine,  which  is  four  years  younger  than  that  of  the  male  teachers, 
though  comparatively  few  men  are  appointed  Principals  under  the 
age  of  thirty. 

Six  Principals,  besides  those  who  died,  were  compelled  by  ill  health 
to  retire  temporarily  or  permanently  from  active  labor  during  the 
decennium.  Three  of  these  were  restored  to  health  by  rest  from 
work,  aided  in  one  case  by  foreign  travel  and  in  another  by  change 
of  residence,  and  returned  to  service;   a  fourth  expects  to  resume 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF. 


75 


labor  this  autumn.  "If  I  had  not  stopped  work,"  writes  one  of  the 
strongest,  "  I  have  no  doubt  I  should  have  gone  to  my  grave  or  an 
insane  asylum." 

The  following  table  summarizes  the  statistics  of  deaths,  and  retire- 
ments on  account  of  ill  health,  above  presented: 


Mean  Annual 

Number  between 

Ages  of 

20  and  75. 

Number  of 
Deaths. 

Annual 

Number  of 

Deaths  per 

1,000 

Living. 

Aver- 
age 

Age  at 

tunc 

of 
Death. 

MnmbM 
Retired 
Temporari- 
ly oi  I *.- 1- 

manently 
on  account 
of  ill  health. 

Annual 
NiiiuImt  of 

Retire- 
ment! per 

1,000 
Persons. 

United  States 

25,532,865 
395 

(lyr.)  303,231 
(10  yr.)          39 

20.2 
9.87 

Teachers  of  the  deaf 

44 

33 

8.38 

Male  teachers 

Female  teachers 

168 
227 

(10  yr.)          24 
(10  yr.)          15 

14.28 
6.78 

53 
31 

10 
23 

5.98 
10.17 

Hearing  teachers. . . 
Deaf  teachers 

263 
132 

(10  yr.)          25 
(10  yr.)          14 

9.5 
10.66 

44 
41 

30 
3 

11.41 
2.27 

Manual  teachers  ... 
Articulation  teach- 
ers     . -. 

(Estimated)  295 
(Estimated)  100 

(10  yr.)          35 
(10  yr.)           5 

11.87 
5. 

45 

36 

21 
12 

7.12 
12. 

Principals  and  Su- 
perintendents   

49 

(10  yr.)          14 

28.57 

•  49 

6 

12.24 

In  conclusion,  I  have  to  thank  the  Principals  and  Superintendents 
who,  at  a  time  when  they  were  unusually  busy  with  labors  relating  to 
the  closing  of  school,  have  given  me  the  information  upon  which  this 
paper  is  based.  Some  of  them  have  kindly  added  suggestions  of  further 
subjects  of  inquiry,  as  with  respect  to  the  length  of  terms  of  service, 
marriage  statistics,  etc.,  but  they  came  too  late  for  rny  present  pur- 
pose. If  any  one  wishes  to  go  into  marriage  statistics  I  will  give 
him,  as  an  encouraging  item  to  begin  with,  the  fact  that  one  Princi- 
pal informs  me  that  he  himself  and  five  of  his  teachers  were  all  mar- 
ried within  one  year,  and  none  of  them  have  regretted  it  yet. 

Mr.  Brooks:  Mr.  President,  if  I  understand  the  first  part  of  the 
paper  which  has  been  read,  the  conclusion  from  it  is  this,  drawn 
from  the  census  of  the  country,  that  there  is  a  smaller  mortality 
among  the  teachers  in  the  deaf  and  dumb  institutions  of  the  country 
than  among  the  general  population  of  the  country.  The  average  of 
deaths  in  the  county  is  a  fraction  over  twenty  in  a  thousand.  And 
I  wish  here  to  state,  as  a  Commissioner  of  Health  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  and  one  who  has  given  some  attention  to  the  subject,  that  the 
average  mortality  of  a  country,  with  the  means  of  securing  healthy 
sewerage,  drainage,  and  ventilation,  ought  not  to  exceed  fifteen  in  a 
thousand.  And,  from  study  and  observation,  I  have  come  to  the  con- 
clusion that  the  proper  lifetime  of  a  man  or  woman,  instead  of  being 
what  is  called  sorrow  if  you  reach  threescore  and  ten,  ought  to  be  at 
least  one  hundred  years.     And  there  are  abundant  evidences  in  the 


76  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

world  that  a  proper  mode  of  living  will  enable  persons  to  arrive  at 
that  age. 

England  has  been  alluded  to.  I  know  of  two  districts  in  England, 
corresponding  precisely  in  character,  geographically  and  materially, 
where  the  death  rate  in  one  is  fifteen  in  a  thousand,  and  in  the  other 
twenty-two  or  twenty- three  in  a  thousand.  What  causes  that  great 
difference  ?  Simply  the  absence  of  proper  drainage,  proper  ventila- 
tion, proper  sewerage,  and  proper  care  of  the  life  of  the  people.  I  am 
associated  with  an  institution  in  the  City  of  New  York,  known  as 
"  The  Nursery  and  Child's  Hospital,"  and  have  been  so  connected  for 
a  great  many  years.  It  was  established  by  a  benevolent  lady,  who 
was  following  the  custom  of  the  time,  and  who,  perhaps,  from  her 
own  physical  disability,  invited  a  wet  nurse  to  take  care  of  a  child  to 
which  she  had  given  birth.  In  the  process  of  time  she  found  this 
hired  nurse  in  great  sorrow  and  trouble,  and  asked  her  the  reason. 
"Have  3rou  not  every  comfort  in  my  home  that  any  of  my  family 
have?  Have  you  not  everything  that  would  add  to  your  comfort?" 
"Everything,"  she  answers;  "but  while  I  am  giving  nourishment  to 
your  offspring  as  a  hired  nurse,  I  am  neglecting  the  child  to  which  I 
myself  gave  birth;"  following  the  custom  too  prevalent  in  a  great 
many  parts  of  the  country,  though  there  may  be  reasons  for  it.  And 
that  incident  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  institution  to  which  I 
made  allusion,  where  the  mortality  of  children  of  that  class,  under 
the  care  of  the  City  Government,  was  from  eighty-seven  to  ninety- 
seven  per  cent  every  year.  Such  was  the  care  which  the  Government 
gave  to  the  children  of  poor  people  in  the  great  metropolis  of  New 
York.  And  the  facts  there  corresponded  with  the  facts  in  other  parts 
of  the  country.  And  the  incident  which  I  have  alluded  to,  led,  first 
to  the  transfer  of  the  child  of  the  wet  nurse  to  her  own  home,  and 
then  to  the  establishment  of  this  institution,  where  the  mortality  to- 
day, instead  of  being  from  eighty-seven  to  ninety-three  per  cent,  is  less 
than  fifteen  per  cent  in  the  city,  and  less  than  seven  per  cent  in  the 
country  branch  of  this  institution. 

This  is  one  fact  in  regard  to  this  great  question,  and  I  think  there 
is  none  more  important  for  us  to  discuss  than  what  may  save  the  lives 
of  the  people,  young  and  old.  And  I  present  it,  therefore,  with  the 
greatest  emphasis  I  can  command,  when  I  say  that  the  proper  venti- 
lation, and  the  proper  drainage,  and  sewage,  especially  of  public 
institutions,  is  the  one  great  primary  fact  in  the  discharge  of  what  I 
consider  a  great  public  duty. 

There  is  another  important  fact  drawn  from  the  statistics  of  the 
country.  We  have  imported  into  this  country,  directly,  nearly  ten* 
millions  of  people  born  abroad;  and  every  one  of  those  human  lives, 
taking  an  average  of  the  good  and  the  bad,  and  the  worst,  possibly, 
the  money  value  of  each  one  of  those  lives  is  $1,000.  And  that  is 
how  the  sickness  of  any  number  adds  largely  to  the  general  expense. 
Physicians'  fees,  and  absence  from  and  inability  to  labor,  and  many 
such  causes,  add  enormously  to  the  general  expense  of  the  commu- 
nity, and  to  the  general  absence  of  that  physical  and  personal  econ- 
omy that  is  necessary  to  the  welfare  of  the  State. 

Now,  I  wish  to  dissent  from  my  friend  in  one  respect,  and  that  is 
in  regard  to  the  hard  work  of  teaching.  I  have  had  some  experience 
of  that  in  my  early  life,  working  in  one  of  those  old-fashioned  pri- 
mary schools  in  Massachusetts,  where  the  law  was  that  I,  in  common 
with  others,  should  teach  boys  six  hours  a  day,  and  girls  two  hours  a 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  77 

day.  I  have  survived  all  that,  and  lived  to  a  pretty  good  old  age, 
with  no  better  constitution  than  the  average  man.  In  my  own  occu- 
pation, for  forty-one  consecutive  years  drilling  in  one  rut,  in  a  much 
harder  occupation  than  school  teaching,  I  was  enabled  to  work  dili- 
gently ten  and  a  quarter  hours  a  day  for  every  school  day  in  those 
forty-one  years  [applause];  and,  as  a  rule,  I  do  not  believe  that  one 
man  in  a  million  ever  died  from  hard  work,  either  in  teaching,  in 
mechanical  work,  or  in  any  other  occupation. 

The  greatest  blessing  the  Lord  ever  gave  to  mankind  was  when  he 
sent  him  forth  with  the  admonition  and  the  instruction  that  he  was 
to  earn  his  daily  bread  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow;  that  the  punish- 
ment for  the  crimes  and  errors  committed  is  one  of  the  greatest  bless- 
ings visited  upon  us.  In  the  institution  which  I  represent  here,  the 
teachers,  upon  receiving  additional  pay,  teach  eight  hours  a  day; 
and  I  do  not  think  we  have  had  a  single  mortality  in  consequence  of 
that  fact. 

Dr.  Gallaudet,  of  Washington :  I  feel  sure  that  I  speak  for  many 
here  present  whose  duty  it  has  been  to  manage  affairs  of  institutions 
for  the  deaf;  and  when  I  rise  to  give  thanks  to  my  friend  and 
colaborer  for  the  very  sympathetic  and  discriminating  presentation 
which  he  has  made  of  the  burdens  and  labors  that  rest  on  the  head 
of  an  institution,  and  I  am  glad  to  take  this  opportunity  to  say,  if  I 
may  be  allowed  to  speak  personally,  that  it  has  been  because  our 
worthy  editor  of  the  "Annals"  had,  from  time  to  time,  devolved 
upon  him  temporarily  the  duties  and  the  responsibilities  of  the  man- 
agement of  an  institution,  that  its  head  overburdened  and  overborne 
by  cares  might  have  that  needed  rest,  for  a  longer  or  shorter  time, 
that  he  might  recuperate  the  powers  and  strength  that  were  waning, 
that  Professor  Fay  has  learned  to  speak  so  decidedly  and  so  clearly 
of  what  are  the  cares  and  burdens  of  the  Principal,  and  how  they 
may  be  lightened  by  those  who  are  near  him.  And  I  return  here, 
publicly,  my  sincere  thanks  and  acknowledgments  to  him  that  I 
have  been  able  to  go  away  from  my  cares  and  to  go  with  the  feeling 
that  they  were  in  good  and  safe  hands,  that  I  have  been  able  to  hold 
my  strength  and  vigor  as  I  have.  Often  I  have  gone  away  from 
Washington  and  left  Professor  Fay  as  the  acting  President  of  the 
institution  there,  and  left  everything  there  behind  and  gone  away 
with  the  freedom  of  a  boy  to  regain  health  and  strength  for  renewed 
labors.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Moses,  of  Tennessee:  I  think  we  are  certainly  all  under  obli- 
gations to  Professor  Fay  for  giving  us  in  such  a  satisfactory  way  the 
collection  of  statistics  that  are  certainly  to  be  valuable  to  all  con- 
nected with  this  work.  While  he  has  probably  made  apologies 
enough  for  the  allowances  that  must  be  made  on  account  of  the  short 
time  which  these  statistics  cover,  and  the  small  number  of  persons 
they  embrace,  still  we  all  know  that  those  are  important  factors  in 
considering  statistics.  We  can  take  a  census  report  and  prove  almost 
everything  by  it;  at  least  that  has  been  my  experience,  where  we 
take  a  small  number  of  persons  and  covering  but  a  small  number 
of  years. 

I  do  not  believe  that  the  deductions  made  by  Professor  K  ay  to-day 
will  hold  good  in  the  future.  But  I  believe  he  has  made  a  good 
beginning,  and  has  given  us  a  basis  which  year  by  year  will  be  added 
to,  and  will  make  this  subject  clear.  For  one  I  know  that  the  teach- 
ing of  a  class  of  deaf  mutes  is  among  the  most  laborious  kinds  ot 


78  PROCEEDINGS    OF    THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

work  that  can  be  engaged  in.  I  can  work  ten  or  twelve  hours  a  day 
in  the  field  and  not  be  so  much  fatigued  or  suffer  so  much  nervous 
prostration  as  I  do  from  ^ye  solid  hours'  work  in  the  school-room. 
And  I  have  had  experience  of  that,  sir.  I  taught  for  ten  years,  and 
went  from  school  teaching  into  other  work,  in  which  I  averaged  more 
than  fourteen  hours  a  day  of  hard  work  and  with  severe  exposure, 
and  I  was  a  stronger  man  at  the  end  of  three  years  that  I  was  out  of 
the  school  than  when  I  left  the  school  and  went  into  that  work. 

I  will  not  enter  a  comparison  between  the  Principal  and  the 
teacher,  for  some  of  the  overburdened  Principals  here  might  say  I 
was  not  attending  to  the  Principal's  work  as  I  should.  But  I  do  say 
that  the  work  of  teaching,  if  faithfully  and  earnestly  followed,  is  as 
trying  to  the  nervous  system  as  any  that  I  have  ever  been  acquainted 
with,  and  I  have  engaged  in  several  kinds  of  hard  work.  And  I 
believe  that  it  will  be  found  after  awhile  that  the  teacher  who  ear- 
nestly and  faithfully  does  his  school -room  work  is  entitled  to  as  much 
consideration,  and  is  making  as  much  sacrifice  for  humanity  and  for 
his  work,  as  any  man  engaged  in  any  work  and  any  profession. 
[Applause.] 

Mr.  Brooks:  I  omitted  a  single  fact  which  I  desired  to  state.  In 
the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  the  man  who  pro- 
vides the  food,  the  coal,  and  the  necessary  support  of  the  institution, 
is  not  the  Principal  of  the  institution.  I  am  neither  speaking  as  a 
Principal  nor  as  a  teacher  now,  but  as  a  man  who  has  been  a  Director 
of  the  institution  for  thirty  years.  I  have  held  that  the  Principal  of 
an  institution  should  have  control  of  the  educational  department  of 
that  institution,  and  be,  if  possible,  wholly  exempt  from  those  mate- 
rial things  which  belong  to  the  buying  of  beef,  pork,  mutton,  butter, 
coal,  and  all  those  material  things.  What  relation  have  these  things 
with  the  proper  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb?  Every  Superin- 
tendent should  have  such  assistants  as  will  exempt  him  from  all  of 
these  severe  labors,  which  relate  to  the  material  part  of  the  institu- 
tion, and  are  as  far  from  the  educational  department  as  they  could 
possibly  be.  I  believe  in  the  complete  separation  of  what  belongs  to 
education  and  what  belongs  to  material  things.  We  have  followed 
that  practice  in  our  institution.  I  believe  in  the  complete  separation 
of  those  two  departments  of  service. 

Mr.  Jenkins,  of  New  Jersey:  T  think  that  the  subject  alluded  to  by 
the  last  gentleman  is  hardly  germane  to  the  subject  of  the  paper.  I 
merely  make  this  suggestion  because  I  do  not  desire  to  have  it  infer- 
red that  the  silence  of  his  audience  implies  entire  acquiescence  in  the 
proposition  laid  down  by  him.  But  the  subject  may  very  likely 
come  up  for  discussion  at  another  time  of  the  convention. 

The  following  paper  was  then  read  by  Mr.  James  Denison,  of 
Washington,  D.  C,  upon — 

THE   MANUAL   ALPHABET   AS  A  PART   OF   THE   PUBLIC   SCHOOL   COURSE. 

In  some  English  magazine  I  remember  reading  a  few  years  ago  a 
story  to  the  following  effect: 

A  burglar,  intent  upon  robbery,  had  obtained  entrance  to  a  bed- 
room, where  the  lady  of  the  house,  awaked  from  sleep  by  the  noise 
of  his  movements,  was  intimidated  from  giving  an  alarm  by  his 
fierce  threats  of  violence.  Hearing  footsteps  approaching,  the  rob- 
ber concealed  himself  behind  the  bed,  first  cautioning  the  occupant 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  79 

that  the  least  whisper  of  his  presence  would  be  at  the  risk  of  her 
life.  The  husband  entered,  unsuspicious  of  the  fact  that  from  his 
place  of  concealment  the  robber,  with  leveled  pistol  and  finger  on 
trigger,  was  breathlessly  watching  and  listening.  The  situation  was 
full  of  peril,  more  easily  imagined  than  described.  The  least  allusion 
to  the  truth  might  have  been  instant  death  to  the  beloved  husband, 
and  probably  to  the  wife  also.  Now,  it  had  happened  that,  in  their 
younger  days,  they  had  learned  the  manual  alphabet  of  the  deaf,  and 
had  frequently  since,  as  occasion  suggested,  communicated  with  each 
other  by  it.  Unseen  by  the  robber,  the  lady  gave  her  husband,  on 
her  ringers,  an  inkling  of  the  state  of  matters.  He  took  in  the  situa- 
tion at  a  glance — literally  at  a  glance — and  making  a  misleading 
remark  about  something  he  had  forgotten  to  bring,  he  was  out  of  the 
room  and  in  a  moment  back  again  with  firearms  and  assistance,  and 
the  burglar  was  captured,  and  robbery  and  possible  murder  pre- 
vented; and  this  by  the  manual  alphabet,  an  accomplishment  easily 
and  carelessly  learned  years  before,  with  no  thought  of  its  future  em- 
ployment in  such  an  emergency. 

This  case,  extreme  as  it  may  seem,  only  illustrates  the  general  rule 
that  in  daily  life  circumstances  are  constantly  arising  in  which  there 
is  an  imperative  necessity  of  saying  something  directly  to  the  person 
most  interested  in  a  way  not  to  attract  too  greatly  the  undesired  atten- 
tion of  others,  and  of  saying  it  quickly,  perspicaciously,  felicitously, 
without  using  the  voice. 

Writing  is  a  medium  of  communication  that  answers  these  pur- 
poses at  certain  moments  and  on  certain  occasions.  It  is  undoubtedly 
an  indispensable  medium  where  distance,  exactitude  of  statement, 
future  reference,  extent  of  matter  are  to  be  considered.  There  is  no 
need  of  enlarging  upon  this  phase  of  its  usefulness;  it  is  universally 
acknowledged. 

There  are  indisputably  times  and  places  in  which  the  finger  alpha- 
bet fulfills,  as  writing  cannot  do  it,  the  conditions  of  expression 
where  vocal  utterance  is  either  not  desirable  or  not  possible;  where 
to  use  pen  or  pencil  would  be  either  an  inconvenience,  a  waste  of 
time,  or  a  sheer  impossibility. 

How  often  at  social  gatherings— I  am  not  alluding  to  the  deaf  in 
this  connection— do  we  not  see  individuals,  separated  from  each  other 
by  the  crowd  or  the  length  of  the  room,  vainly  striving  by  bewilder- 
ing contortions  of  the  countenance  or  noddings  of  the  head  to  convey 
a  piece  of  information  upon  which  may  hinge  the  ease  and  pleasure 
of  the  evening.  Repeatedly  it  must  have  occurred  to  the  looker-on 
as  he  noticed  the  mortification  or  blank  disappointment  depicted 
upon  their  faces  at  the  futility  of  their  attempts  to  reach  a  common 
understanding,  that  the  finger  alphabet  would  have  furnished  them 
with  a  means  of  perfectly  accomplishing  that  object  without  attract- 
ing undesirable  attention  by  uncouth  gestures  or  obliging  them  to 
make  themselves  conspicuous  by  raising  the  voice  beyond  the  proper 
pitch. 

Probably  no  one  has  ever  left  a  promiscuous  gathering  of  any  kind 
without  recalling  an  unfortunate  moment  made  so  by  a  lapse  of 
memory  or  some  misinformation  as  to  the  name,  identity,  or  profession 
of  a  person  interviewed,  where  the  use  of  the  finger  alphabet  on  the 
part  of  a  kindly  disposed  third  person  would  have  saved  him  from 
an  awkward  blunder.  . 

In  concerts  where  music  has  charms  to  still  every  other  sound;  in 


80  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

the  church  where  any  other  voice  than  that  from  pulpit  or  choir  would 
shock  the  congregation  from  center  to  circumference;  in  the  theater 
where  the  owner  of  a  voice  in  orchestra  or  gallery  finds  himself  the 
focus  of  a  hundred  lorgnettes,  and  again  amid  the  noise  and  rattle  of 
the  machine  shop,  factory,  or  railroad,  how  often  arises  an  imperious 
necessity  of  making  a  communication  to  another.  How  handy — old 
Saxon  word  this,  but  pat  to  the  purpose,  is  it  not  ?— how  handy,  at 
such  times  and  in  such  places  would  come  the  manual  alphabet, 
achieving  the  end  sought  for  completely  and  without  the  least  fric- 
tion or  disturbance. 

Outside  of  the  confessedly  deaf,  how  many  persons  there  are,  who 
resenting  with  warmth  the  imputation  of  not  being  the  possessors  of 
a  perfect  auditory  apparatus,  are  yet  hardly  ever  addressed  except  in 
tones  more  or  less  raised  above  the  conversational  pitch.  Often  in 
certain  situations  the  recollection  of  the  fact  that  the  voice  must  be 
thus  heightened  is  an  effectual  preventive  of  anything  being  said  at 
all.  Thus  timely,  pleasurable,  or  valuable  information  has  been  with- 
held when  the  finger  alphabet  could  and  would  have  put  it  where  it 
would  have  done  the  most  good. 

To  the  invalid  and  to  the  sick-room  the  manual  alphabet  comes,  as 
it  were,  with  healing  on  its  wings.  Has  not  every  home  its  sick-room 
dedicated  to  the  Goddess  of  Perfect  Quiet;  every  family  its  invalid, 
a  sort  of  living  original  of  the  marble  statue  of  Silence,  with  finger 
forever  on  lip?  How  the  sound  of  the  human  voice,  be  it  ever  so 
modulated  and  repressed,  racks  the  ear  of  the  nervous  sick  one. 
How  the  whispers  of  the  nurse  or  the  subdued  tones  of  the  physician 
startle  him  from  the  repose  upon  which  his  recovery  depends,  and 
turn  his  thoughts  into  channels  that  lead  to  apprehension  and  de- 
spondency. How  perfectly,  how  beautifully,  the  manual  alphabet 
performs  its  functions  here;  every  weary  nerve  in  the  sufferer's  body 
cries  out,  "God  bless  it."  And  again,  on  the  other  hand,  when  the 
invalid  is  incapacitated  by  disease  or  exhaustion  from  using  his  voice, 
what  a  solace  to  him  and  his  attendants  it  is  if  he  can  still  express 
his  wants  by  the  silent  unlaborious  motion  of  his  ringers. 

In  this  connection  it  is  not  out  of  place  to  refer  to  a  more  solemn 
subject— that  of  the  deathbed.  Some  of  you  who  have  stood  by  the 
dying  ere  the  soul  had  taken  its  flight,  may  recall — and  with  what 
feelings  I  will  not  say — that  last  appealing  look  and  those  vain 
endeavors  of  the  departing  one  to  express  some  final  desire.  It  is  a 
well  known  fact  that  the  vocal  chords  give  way  long  before  the  mus- 
cles of  the  hand;  the  dying  man  is  "speechless,"  while  his  fingers 
move  at  will.  How  many  last  messages  to  be  treasured  thenceforth 
as  a  most  precious  heritage  have  been  lost  to  the  loving  ones  remain- 
ing behind;  lost  because  the  finger  alphabet  was  not  known. 

Members  of  the  family  of  Dr.  Thomas  Hopkins  Gallaudet  have 
told  me  that  in  his  last  moments  such  precious  and  ever  to  be 
remembered  messages  continued  to  come  from  his  fingers  after  his 
tongue  was  paralyzed  in  death.  The  same  may  be  said  of  the  Rev.  B. 
M.  Fay,  father  of  Professor  Fay,  of  Kendall  Green,  who  passed  away 
lasi  year;  of  Grace  Aguilar,  known  to  us  through  her  "  Days  of  Bruce," 
"  Home  Influence,"  and  other  writings,  of  whom  the  "  Annals  "  *  says: 
"In  her  final  illness,  when  the  power  of  speech  was  gone,  she  con- 
versed with  her  friends  in  the  manual  alphabet,  and  her  last  words 

•Vol!  XVII,  page  182. 


fgmYERsr 

OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DEAF,  81 

thus  expressed  were:  'Though  He  slay  me,  yet  will  I  \v\\<\  in  Him.'" 
Dr.  Harvey  P.  Peet,  in  an  obituary  notice  of  Martha  Dudley  in  the 
same  periodical,*  states  the  same  fact  as  regards  her  last  hours,  and 
mentions  at  the  same  time  how  "  Mrs.  Peet,  after  she  became  wholly 
speechless,  spelled  with  her  fingers  distinctly  the  word  'Mother,' 
which  incident  is  commemorated  in  a  touching  little  poem  of  Mrs. 
Sigourney,  '  The  last  word  of  the  dying.' " 

Thus  far  I  have  mentioned  only  a  tithe  of  the  circumstances  in 
which  a  knowledge  of  the  manual  alphabet  would  be  an  advantage — 
I  may  say,  an  immeasurable  advantage — to  hearing  people.  A 
moment's  thought  will  suggest  to  any  one  so  many  further  illustra- 
tions to  the  same  effect,  that  there  would  not  be  space  or  time  to  men- 
tion them  all. 

I  must,  however,  mention  one  more.  The  finger  alphabet  possesses 
acknowledged,  and,  in  the  opinion  of  those  familiar  with  its  use,  an 
unequaled  excellence  as  a  means  of  education  in  orthography.  The 
care  and  deliberation  with  which  the  letters  are  formed,  and  the 
concentration  of  mind  that  the  process  involves,  insure  precision 
beyond  any  other  method. 

At  Kendall  Green,  and  possibly  at  other  places  similarly  situated 
in  regard  to  schools  for  the  deaf,  where  the  hearing  children  of  the 
locality  are  formed  into  little  schools  for  private  instruction,  the  finger 
alphabet  has  been  practically  and  successfully  tested  in  this  respect. 
The  teachers  like  it.  "It  makes  the  pupil  so  particular,"  they  say. 
I  have  in  mind  now  children  of  deaf  parents,  early  used  to  this 
alphabet,  who  on  entering  public  schools  easily  led  their  classes  in 
spelling,  to  the  wonderment  of  their  teachers  until  the  reason  was 
explained. 

Once  more  I  have  recourse  to  the  " Annals r:f  "It  was  a  favorite 
idea  of  the  late  Rev.  T.  H.  Gallaudet,  the  lamented,  illustrious  pio- 
neer of  deaf  mute  education  in  this  country,  that  the  practice  of 
spelling  words  with  the  manual  alphabet,  even  by  hearing  and  speak- 
ing children,  might  be  made  very  serviceable  to  them,  by  familiar- 
izing them  with  the  correct  orthography  of  words  aside  from  the  use 
of  the  ear.  The  principle  upon  which  the  idea  is  based  we  think  to 
be  this:  The  more  varied  the  form  under  which  language  is  presented 
to  the  mind  through  the  different  senses,  the  more  perfect  will  be  the 
knowledge  of  it  acquired,  and  the  more  permanently  will  it  be  re- 
tained." 

In  view  of  the  incontestably  great  usefulness  of  the  manual  alpha- 
bet to  the  hearing,  and  considering  the  comparatively  little -labor  and 
time  needed  to  acquire  it,  has  not  the  day  arrived  when  some  deter- 
mined effort  should  be  made  to  adopt  it  into  the  public  school  system 
of  the  country  ?  Should  not  this  matter  be  urged  upon  the  attention 
of  teachers  and  Boards  of  Trustees  of  the  public  schools  ?  Could  not 
they  be  persuaded  to  hang  charts  of  the  manual  alphabet  on  the  walls 
of  their  school-rooms,  with  cuts  large  enough  to  be  seen  without  effort 
from  the  farthest  corner  ?  Could  not  they  be  led  to  try  the  experi- 
ment of  using  this  alphabet  as  a  means  of  drill  in  spelling,  instead  of 
the  present  method  of  writing  out  long  lists  of  words  ?  The  same 
course,  by  the  way,  might  be  found  useful  in  recitations  in  geography. 

Would  not  the  school-room  work  move  on  in  smoother  grooves, 


*  Vol.  V,  pp.  78-83. 

t  Luzerne  Ray,  "Annals,"  vol.  V,  page  28. 

6D 


82  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

with  less  jar  to  nerve  and  temper,  if  a  pupil  instead  of  speaking  aloud 
and  thus  distracting  the  attention  of  others  from  their  studies,  simply 
spelled  out  on  his  hand  a  request  or  a  question  to  the  teacher?  Would 
not  the  teacher  himself  feel  more  satisfaction  in  making  a  remark  to 
a  pupil  in  this  way,  having  once  caught  his  eye,  than  in  interrupting 
the  work  of  a  whole  class  to  do  it? 

The  objection  may  be  made  that  the  result  would  be  a  demoraliza- 
tion of  discipline;  that  pupils  will  have  still  another  means  of  talking 
in  school  regardless  of  rules.  To  this,  it  might  be  answered,  that 
there  will  always  be  more  or  less  of  this  unauthorized  interchange  of 
ideas  in  every  school-room;  and  that  if  it  should  be  carried  on  through 
the  finger  alphabet  there  would  be  less  disturbance  than  if  any  other 
medium  were  employed.  But  in  truth,  the  teacher  possesses  a  check 
on  the  abuse  of  the  manual  alphabet,  in  the  fact  that  he  is  himself 
skilled  in  its  use,  and  can  tell  what  his  pupils  may  be  saying.  A 
teacher  in  the  high  school,  at  Washington,  informs  me  that  all  unlaw- 
ful attempts  of  this  sort  ceased  at  once  when  his  pupils  found  that 
their  remarks  were  no  riddle  to  him. 

In  keeping  this  matter  within  legitimate  bounds,  everything  of 
course  depends  upon  whether  the  teacher  has  tact,  influence,  char- 
acter. Lacking  these  qualities,  he  has  no  right  to  be  where  and  what 
he  is.  With  them,  he  is  sure  of  commanding  the  respect  and  obedi- 
ence of  his  pupils  for  whatever  regulations  his  judgment  may  lead 
him  to  make.  Where  the  manual  alphabet  is  employed,  as  it  is  in 
schools  for  the  deaf,  its  use  is  under  proper  control.  Why  need  the 
case  be  different  elsewhere? 

If,  thus  far,  I  have  failed  to  expatiate  upon  the  benefit — great  be- 
yond conception — that  the  introduction  of  the  manual  alphabet  into 
the  schools  of  the  hearing  would  confer  upon  the  deaf  mute  himself, 
it  is  because  this  is  something  that  need  only  to  be  suggested  to  be 
recognized  in  all  its  force  and  extent.  When  we  think  how  the  gen- 
eral use  of  the  manual  alphabet  would  throw  wide  open  the  doors  of 
communication  between  the  deaf  mute  and  the  hearing — doors  that 
now  open  with  difficulty  and  close  again  almost  as  soon  as  opened; 
when  with  the  mind's  eye,  we  see  the  deaf  child's  intellect  and  heart 
unfolding  from  tender  years  in  the  sunlight  of  knowledge,  under  con- 
ditions more  analogous  to  those  of  his  hearing  playmate;  when  we 
behold  the  deaf  adult,  wherever  he  finds  himself,  whether  in  places 
of  business,  in  political  meetings,  in  religious  assemblies,  in  social 
gatherings,  placed  in  perfect  unison  with  his  neighbors  and  surround- 
ings; when  we  realize  that  he  moves  among  his  peers  with  no  feeling  of 
isolation;  when  we  know  that  there  may  be  more  instances  than  here- 
tofore in  which  "the  charm  of  warming  hands,"  but  without  the  evil 
taint  of  the  charm  that  Vivien  wiled  away  from  Merlin,  shall  knit 
together  for  life  the  heart  of  the  deaf  and  that  of  the  hearing,  how 
can  we  as  members  of  our  noble  profession,  hesitate  to  give  our  vote, 
individually  and  collectively,  for  the  general  diffusion  of  the  manual 
alphabet  through  the  public  school  system  of  the  country?  No;  let 
us  not  hesitate;  let  us  not  even  doubt. 

"  Our  doubts  are  traitors, 
And  make  us  lose  the  good  we  oft  might  win, 
By  fearing  to  attempt. 

Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Gallaudet:  I  shall  never  forget  the  pleasure 
that  beamed  upon  the  faces  of  several  deaf  mutes  in  the  fall  of  1853, 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  83 

when  I  met  Rev.  Bishop  Wain  right  in  the  beginning  of  our  enter- 
prise in  New  York,  when  he  held  confirmation  there,  having  con- 
firmed some  six  or  eight  deaf  mutes  that  afternoon,  and  as  he  finished 
the  service  stepped  down  and  spoke  in  the  manual  alphabet,  which 
he  had  learned  as  rector  of  Christ's  Church,  Hartford.  A  perfect 
thrill  of  joy  went  through  that  community  as  the  Bishop  came  down, 
shook  hands  and  spelled  with  them.  And  I  remember  an  invalid 
lady  of  New  York  who  took  a  particular  fancy  to  my  wife,  a  deaf 
mute,  who  learned  the  alphabet,  and  just  at  the  end  of  her  life  she 
spelled  the  word  "water." 

Prof.  E.  A.  Fay:  In  this  connection  I  will  call  the  attention  of  the 
members  of  the  convention  to  a  little  volume  giving  the  manual 
alphabet,  and  in  which  one  whole  page  is  devoted  to  each  letter.  It 
has  recently  been  published  by  my  friend  and  colleague,  Professor 
Gerdon,  who  I  am  very  sorry  is  not  able  to  be  present.  This  book 
presents  the  manual  alphabet  in  such  an  attractive  and  beautiful 
way  that  I  am  sure  that  any  children  in  whose  hands  it  is  placed  will 
not  fail  to  learn  it  and  be  improved  by  it;  and  our  object  would  be 
much  promoted  if  this  little  volume  could  have  a  wide  circulation 
among  hearing  persons. 

Mr.  Booth:  As  a  teacher,  it  is  ever  my  purpose  to  enlist  in  the 
work  of  teaching  my  class  everybody  that  I  can  outside  of  my  school- 
room and  outside  of  the  institution.  [Applause.]  And  to  this  end  I 
have  made  it  my  practice,  at  the  end  of  the  school  year,  to  give  to  my 
class  and  distribute  among  them,  as  many  as  I  could  afford  to  pur- 
chase, cards  upon  which  are  printed  the  deaf  mute  alphabet.  Two 
years  ago  I  procured  a  number  of  illustrated  cards,  printed  and  pre- 
pared by  Armes  &  Co.,  of  Philadelphia;  and  they  were  of  sufficient 
value  that  my  pupils  when  they  went  home  could  use  them  making 
presents  to  their  friends.  Being  of  intrinsic  value  and  beautifully 
illuminated  and  lithographed,  their  friends  appreciated  them  suffi- 
ciently to  put  forth  some  effort  to  learn  the  alphabet.  So,  in  that 
way,  also,  the  most  of  my  intimate  or  their  intimate  friends  learned 
the  alphabet,  and  were  able  to  communicate  with  them;  and  thus 
my  pupils  also  enlarged  their  circle  of  acquaintances,  perhaps.  They 
certainly  enlarged  the  number  of  pupils  with  whom  they  could  con- 
verse freely.  The  end  that  I  aimed  at  was  that  these  people  might 
assist  me  in  teaching  my  class  language.  And  I  submit  that  there 
can  be  no  better  way  than  by  conversing  on  subjects  that  interest 
my  pupils,  and  that  will  bring  into  use  language  which  will  not  be 
used  generally  in  routine  school  work. 

Mr.  T.  L.  Brown,  of  Michigan:  The  papers  which  have  been  read 
have  filled  me  with  great  pleasure,  and  I  think  that  others  have  also 
been  pleased.  Hearing  people  may  not  care  to  learn  the  alphabet 
until  shown  the  importance  of  it;  and  we  should  think  what  induce- 
ment we  can  offer  them  to  learn  it.  I  think  a  committee  should  be 
appointed  to  write  out  these  reasons. 

In  a  machine  shop,  amid  the  noise  of  machinery,  where  a  person 
speaking  could  not  be  heard,  they  could  use  this  alphabet  with  advan- 
tage. So,  on  the  railroad,  they  could  spell  a  message  at  a  distance. 
I  think  a  committee  should  be  appointed  to  write  up  the  subject  and 
put  it  in  the  "Annals,"  making  some  allusion  to  this  subject  in  the 
reports  of  the  different  institutions,  and  giving  all  the  reasons.  I  do 
not  believe  in  peddling  these  alphabets,  but  in  giving  them  away 
freely,  so  that  the  people  can  get  them.     Deaf  mutes  themselves  must 


84  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

enter  into  the  use  of  the  manual  alphabet  with  their  friends,  and  not 
stand  back  and  be  diffident  about  it.  I  hope  that  the  time  will  come 
when  there  will  be  few  that  do  not  understand  the  manual  alphabet. 

A  deaf  mute  going  into  a  store,  it  takes  a  long  time  to  write  out  all 
his  wants.  If  the  clerk  of  a  store  understands  the  alphabet,  then  that 
would  draw  deaf  mutes  into  the  store  and  thus  increase  their  trade. 
That  would  be  another  inducement  for  people  to  learn  the  alphabet. 
[Applause.] 

Rev.  Job  Turner,  of  Virginia:  In  my  moving  around  in  the  South- 
ern States  I  meet  a  great  many  people  that  use  the  double-handed 
alphabet.  I  find  that  to  be  quite  a  universal  custom.  As  this  is  the 
case,  I  think  that  in  the  different  institutions  for  the  deaf  and  dumb 
the  pupils  ought  to  learn  the  double-handed  alphabet  also,  so  that 
they  can  converse  with  all.  I  think  they  should  have  practice  in 
both,  so  that  they  can  have  the  pleasure  of  such  communication. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  In  this  connection  I  will  say  a  word,  lest  it  be 
supposed  that  in  the  earnestness  and  interest  expressed  now  in  ref- 
erence to  the  finger  alphabet,  the  fact  may  be  overlooked  that,  in  the 
constantly  increasing  numbers  of  the  pupils  of  our  institutions  who 
learn  to  speak  and  read  from  the  lips,  the  minds  of  some  persons  may 
form  the  idea  that  the  manual  alphabet  is  going  to  be  of  less  and  less 
importance  to  the  deaf  as  time  goes  on;  that,  as  a  greater  number  of 
pupils  learn  to  speak  and  read  the  lips,  there  will  be  less  and  less 
need  of  the  manual  alphabet  to  enable  them  to  sustain  the  relations 
which  they  desire  to  sustain  with  those  who  hear  and  speak.  I  would 
like  to  assure  any  persons  whose  thoughts  may  be  drifting  in  that 
direction,  that  it  would  be  an  error  to  suppose  that  even  if  the  whole 
body  of  our  pupils  could  be  taught  to  speak  passably  well,  and  to  read 
from  the  lips,  that  the  manual  alphabet  would  then  have  no  place 
with  them,  and  be  of  no  service  to  them.  Quite  the  contrary,  Mr. 
President.  It  would  be  of  very  great  service  to  them.  And  in  my 
judgment  every  deaf  child  should  have  a  ready  knowledge  and  use 
of  the  manual  alphabet;  for  circumstances  arise  not  infrequently 
when  its  use,  even  to  deaf  persons  who  can  speak  and  read  from  the 
lips,  would  be  found  of  very  great  advantage.  And  in  support  of 
this  assertion  1  will  cite  a  case  which  came  recently  under  my  obser- 
vation in  Washington. 

A  lady  whose  home,  I  think,  is  in  Wisconsin,  who  had  never  been 
a  pupil  in  an  institution  for  the  deaf,  but  had  lost  her  hearing 
towards  mature  life,  and  had  lost  it  entirely,  who  had  learned  to  read 
from  the  lips  remarkably  well,  and  who  had  always  had  speech, 
called  with  a  friend  at  my  house,  and  I  entered  into  conversation 
with  her.  I  said  something  which  she  did  not  quite  understand,  and 
she  replied:  "Won't  you  please  spell  it  on  your  fingers?"  I  did  so, 
and  expressed  surprise  that  she  knew  the  manual  alphabet.  She 
said:  "I  am  not  one  of  those  foolish  people  who  have  any  prejudice 
against  any  good  thing.  I  can  read  from  the  lips,  it  is  true,  generally 
very  well.  I  can  make  myself  easily  understood  with  my  speech; 
but  I  find  often  that  I  am  a  little  at  a  loss,  and  then  if  I  can  have  the 
help  of  the  manual  alphabet  from  those  I  am  conversing  with,  I  con- 
sider it  a  godsend."  So  she  says:  "I  supplement  my  communication 
with  others  by  the  speech  and  by  letter  writing  with  the  prompt  and 
instant  use  of  the  manual  alphabet,  which  helps  me  out  of  many  dif- 
ficulties." 

And  I  can  say  further  that  there  come  within  the  circle  of  my 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE  DEAF.  85 

acquaintance  not  a  few  deaf  persons  who  reject  the  manual  alphabet 
on  principle,  they  being  speakers  and  speech  readers.  I  know,  by 
absolute  observation  and  experience  in  my  connection  with  such  per- 
sons, that  not  infrequently  there  occur  times  and  occasions  when  a 
resort  to  the  use  of  the  manual  alphabet  to  make  clear  an  obscure 
word,  to  help  out  an  imperfect  sentence,  would  be  a  great  blessing 
and  comfort,  not  only  to  the  person  who  speaks  the  words  from  the 
lips,  but  to  those  who  are  communicating  to  such  persons. 

Therefore,  I  would  draw  attention  to  this  fact,  that  while  we,  all  of 
us,  are  encouraging,  to  the  best  of  our  ability  and  to  the  extent  of  the 
means  at  our  disposal,  the  teaching  of  speech  and  speech  reading  to 
such  of  the  deaf  as  can  possibly  be  benefited,  in  doing  so  we  must  not 
think  of  coming  to  the  time  when  we  can  dispense  with  the  manual 
alphabet.  In  my  opinion  that  will  ever  stand,  so  long  as  the  afflic- 
tion of  deafness  befalls  humanity;  will  ever  stand  as  an  adjunct  and 
means  of  communication  worthy  to  be  cherished,  cultivated,  and 
carried  through  to  the  very  end  of  time. 

Dr.  Peet:  I  will  offer  a  resolution  in  connection  with  this  paper, 
in  order  that  we  may  make  it  practicable.  I  move  that  the  Execu- 
tive Committee  of  the  convention  be  requested  to  publish  this  paper 
in  the  "  Annals,"  and  that  they  memorialize  the  Department  of  Public 
Education  at  Washington  on  the  subject;  and  that  the  Principal  of 
each  institution  in  the  United  States  be  appointed  a  committee  to 
memorialize  the  Department  of  Public  Instruction  in  that  State,  to 
the  effect  that  the  recommendation  of  this  paper  shall  be  carried  out 
in  the  public  schools. 

The  motion  being  put  was  carried  unanimously. 

Mr.  C.  W.  Gamage,  of  New  York-  I  have  seen  a  great  many  people 
that  use  the  double-handed  alphabet,  and  but  few  who  use  the  single. 
Why?  It  appears  that  the  double-handed  alphabet  is  more  easily 
understood  and  acquired. 

Mr.  d'Estrella,  of  California:  I  was  five  years  at  the  Art  School 
in  San  Francisco.  There  were  a  good  many  ladies  in  school  who 
could  talk  with  two  hands.  I  could  talk  in  this  way,  but  I  did  not  like 
it.  It  would  bother  my  work  when  I  had  some  material,  as  char- 
coal, in  one  of  my  hands.  Now,  I  tried  t6  root  out  the  double-handed 
by  making  some  of  them  talk  with  one  hand.  I  explained  why  it 
would  be  convenient,  and  in  doing  so,  I  showed  in  comical  natural 
signs  the  disadvantages  of  the  use  of  spelling  double-handed.  They, 
one  after  another,  learned  with  growing  interest  how  to  talk  single- 
handed.  In  the  course  of  time  some  of  them  could  talk  not  only  to 
me,  but  also  with  each  other.  The  Director  expressed  himself  well 
pleased,  for  two  reasons.  The  first  reason  was  that  it  seemed  to  him 
that  there  was  more  frankness,  freedom,  and  openness  in  silent  talk- 
ing than  in  oral  whispering.  The  second  was  that  as  artist  he  could 
see  and  appreciate  more  life  in  the  expression  of  emotions  while  they 
were  talking  than  when  they  chattered  and  babbled. 

There  was  another  feature  to  the  advantage  of  talking  single- 
handed.  When  they  would  talk  to  me,  1  could  look  at  their  faces  and 
notice  some  of  them  articulate  as  they  were  trying  to  spell  the  words 
on  their  fingers.  This  habit  subsequently  enabled  me  to  read  certain 
short  and  easy  syllables  on  their  lips. 

Mr.  George,  of  Illinois:  I  have  found  in  my  experience  that  peo- 
ple can  learn  the  alphabet  readily  but  they  cannot  read  the  spelling 
of  other  people  so  easily.    People  can  spell  to  me  and  I  can  speak 


86  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

back.  And  I  like  that  method  of  communication  better  than  writing. 
I  find  that  the  double-handed  alphabet  is  more  common  than  the 
single.  Many  friends  of  mine  who  can  spell  with  and  read  the  double- 
handed  cannot  read  the  single-handed. 

Mr.  Jenkins,  of  New  Jersey:  I  am  informed  by  one  of  the  gentle- 
man here  representing  the  press  that  he  learned  the  double-handed 
alphabet  from  the  primer  which  he  studied  when  at  school.  So  the 
action  recommended  by  the  gentleman  who  read  the  last  paper  has 
been  anticipated  in  this  State. 

Mr.  S.  T.  Walker,  of  Kansas:  I  have  never  seen  a  deaf  mute  who 
did  not  understand  both  the  single  and  double-handed  alphabet.  I 
should  not  discourage  the  use  of  the  double-handed  alphabet  if  our 
speaking  friends  preferred  that.  Our  deaf  mutes  could  surely  talk 
with  them  if  they  could  use  the  double-handed  alphabet. 

Mr.  Booth  :  I  suggest  that  in  order  that  we  may  secure  a  general 
and  common  form  of  communication  among  hearing  people  and  their 
deaf  mute  friends  that  we  consider  which  of  the  two  should  be. aban- 
doned and  by  which  class.  Inasmuch  as  the  people  who  use  the 
double-handed  alphabet  are  largely  in  the  majority,  would  it  not  be 
well  for  us  who  are  in  the  minority  to  give  up  the  single-handed 
alphabet  and  take  up  the  double-handed?  It  would  be  an  easy 
matter  for  us  to  do  so. 

Mr.  Ely,  of  Maryland:  The  difference  between  the  signs  in  the 
double-handed  alphabet  as  used  is  greater  than  between  the  signs 
of  the  single  alphabet;  and  so  as  a  natural  result  hearing  persons  are 
able  to  read  the  double  easier  than  the  single.  And  in  conformity 
with  general  usage,  would  it  not  be  a  good  idea  for  us  to  give  up  the 
single  and  take  up  the  double-handed  alphabet?  Why  not  use  both 
of  our  hands? 

Rev.  G-allaudkt:  I  think  we  ought  to  put  the  double-handed  out 
of  existence,  as  the  single-handed  is  so  much  more  convenient, 
enabling  us  to  talk  with  one  hand  while  using  the  other  for  any 
purpose. 

Mr.  Wilkinson  then  read  the  following  letter  from  Homer  B. 
Sprague,  of  Mills'  Seminary,  California: 

Mills'  Seminary,  Alameda  County,  California,  July  17,  1886. 
President  Wilkinson  : 

Dear  Sir:  In  behalf  of  Mrs.  Mills  and  of  all  the  officers  and  teachers  of  this  institution, 
I  hereby  extend  to  you,  and  through  you,  to  the  National  Convention  of  Deaf  Mutes  now 
in  session  at  Berkeley,  a  hearty  invitation  to  visit  Mills'  Seminary  at  such  time  as  may  be 
agreeable  to  you  and  to  them.     With  great  respect, 
Truly  yours, 

HOMER  B.  SPRAGUE,  President. 

Here  the  convention  adjourned  until  three  o'clock  p.  m.  Sunday 
next. 


FRIDAY,  JULY  16,  1886. 

NIGHT   SESSION — NORMAL   SCHOOL   SECTION. 

Mr.  S.  T.  Walker,  Chairman  pro  tern.,  called  the  meeting  to  order. 
Mr.  Weed:  The  topics  to  be  considered  in  this  primary  depart- 
ment are  "Vocabulary,"  "Tense,"  "The  Correction  of  Mistakes," 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  87 

"The  Methods  of  Review,"  and  then  the  exercises  that  have  been 
found  most  profitable  for  primary  teaching.  This  morning  we 
exhausted  only  one  of  these  topics,  which  is  the  first,  "Vocabulary." 

The  next  in  order  is  "Tense;"  I  do  not  specify  what  tense.  The 
exercises  of  this  department  will  now  be  taken  charge  of  by  Miss  I. 
A.  Shrom,  of  Wilkinsburg,  Pennsylvania. 

Miss  Shrom:  I  have  a  paper  here  prepared  by  Miss  Mary  E.  Hen- 
derson (?),  of  the  Illinois  institution,  bearing  directly  upon  this  mat- 
ter of  tense,  which  I  will  read: 

"  I  teach  the  past  tense  first,  with  the  exception  of  the  verbs  '  is '  or 
'are/  'have'  or  'has,'  and  'love.'  If  one  of  my  class  is  sick,  I 
want  at  that  time  to  teach  the  class  to  write,  'John  is  sick,'  and  not 
wait  till  he  gets  well,  and  then  teach  them  to  write  'John  was  sick.' 
It  is  not  necessary  to  wait,  however,  until  a  member  of  the  class 
becomes  sick  before  teaching  the  verb  'is.'  I  have  no  particular 
time  at  which  to  teach  the  word.  This  term  'is'  was  first  used  in 
the  Sabbath  school — 'God  is  good.'  It  was  afterwards  used  similarly 
in  reference  to  persons  whom  the  pupils  knew,  as  'Dr.  Gillett  is 
good,'  etc.  Afterwards  used  in  picture  lessons,  as  '  I  see  a  cat.  The 
cat  is  on  the  floor.  The  cat  is  pretty,'  etc.  I  would  not  teach  the 
class  to  write  'Yesterday  was  Sunday'  before  they  had  learned  to 
write  'To-day  is  Monday.'  I  teach  'have'  and  'has'  at  a  time 
when  a  child  brings  something  new  into  the  school-room,  an  orange, 
for  instance,  or  an  apple.  With  small  speaking  children  the  verb 
'love'  is  almost  invariably  used  in  the  present  tense.  For  that  rea- 
son I  teach  it  to  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  the  present  tense.  It  is  much 
easier  to  teach  the  child  to  write  '  I  love  Dr.  Gillett,'  '  I  love  my 
mother,'  etc.,  than  'The  girl  loved  her  cat.'" 

Mr.  Ely  :  I  desire  to  ask  Mr.  Weed  what  tense  he  uses  at  the  out- 
set, and  for  how  long. 

Mr.  Weed:  For  the  first  two  years  I  teach  the  past  tense  almost 
exclusively.  In  fact,  I  think  it  was  in  the  third  year  that  we  intro- 
duced the  present  tense,  both  in  its  habitual  and  in  its  actual  form. 
I  am  satisfied  that  there  is  more  experience  on  this  subject  in  the 
room  than  has  yet  been  made  manifest.  If  there  are  those  here  who 
have  practiced  both,  confining  themselves  to  the  past  tense  in  the 
first  year,  or  giving  the  past,  present,  and  future  in  the  first  year,  we 
will  be  very  glad  to  have  the  benefit  of  their  experience. 

Miss  Phebe  Wright,  of  Michigan:  In  the  first  year  I  do  not  see 
how  we  can  ask  questions  of  the  pupils  without  using  the  present 
tense.  My  pupils  have  been  taught  to  ask  questions  in  the  first  year; 
and  I  cannot  see  how  they  can  be  taught  to  ask  questions  in  the  past 
tense. 

Mr.  Weed:  Let  me  illustrate  the  manner  in  which  it  was  con- 
ducted in  the  class  to  which  I  referred  this  morning.  Take  the  word 
"see;"  and  supposing  that  only  the  past  tense  has  been  taught.  I 
would  say  "John  saw  what?"  That  may  be  called  an  unnatural 
way  of  putting  the  question.  You  would  prefer  to  say  "  What  did 
John  see  ?  "     Is  that  the  point  ? 

Miss  Wright:  That  is  not  the  exact  point.  In  the  first  place  I 
would  have  John  stand  up  and  see  something,  and  then  he  would 
spell,  "I  saw  a  bird."  Then  I  would  turn  around  and  ask  the 
question. 

Mr.  Weed:  I  would  ask,  "John  saw  what?"  The  attention  of  the 
child  is  fixed  upon  the  object  and  he  simply  answers,  "A  bird;"  and 


88  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

he  has  now  a  complete  and  a  correct  sentence.  If  you  raise  the  ques- 
tion whether  there  is  any  trouble  in  the  transfer  from  that  form  to 
the  other,  I  should  answer  none  whatever.  For  the  first  two  years 
the  questions  are  asked  in  that  form.  All  that  the  child  is  asked  to 
do  at  the  beginning  is  to  substitute  a  bird  for  the  "  what."  The  teacher 
has  given  the  whole  sentence  except  that  one  word.  The  answer 
contains  the  substitute,  and  the  sentence  is  completed.  By  adopting 
that  form  of  question  you  can  confine  yourself  to  the  past  tense  for 
the  first  two  years.  When  the  pupil  comes  to  write  his  compositions, 
as  the  most  of  his  stories  are  in  the  past  tense,  that  is  the  form  in 
which  he  will  write  them.  If  there  were  time  I  should  be  glad  to 
present  this  evening  compositions  written  at  the  end  of  four  and  of 
six  months,  in  which  there  is  scarcely  a  mistake,  which  is  partly 
owing,  I  think,  to  this  form  of  using  the  verb. 

Mr.  Grady,  of  California:  What  distinction  do  you  make  between 
regular  and  irregular  verbs  ?  For  instance,  what  is  the  change  from 
"saw"  to  "see?" 

Mr.  Weed:  We  have  only  one  past  form.  It  is  only  the  simple 
past  tense— the  one  form  of  the  verb  "saw."  For  the  first  year  I 
would  simply  teach  "saw,"  and  not  the  present  tense  at  all,  so  that 
the  idea  of  the  pupil  is  associated  with  only  three  letters,  "  s-a-w." 

Miss  Wright:  I  do  not  see  that  my  question  is  answered  yet: 
What  are  you  going  to  do  with  the  child  that  asks  the  question  ?  You 
certainly  cannot  have  them  ask  the  question  in  the  past  tense,  and 
you  do  not  teach  the  present  tense;  and  what  are  you  going  to  do  ? 

Mr.  Weed:  I  believe  I  qualified  the  statement  in  regard  to  the 
perfectly  uniform  use  of  the  past  tense,  and  would  allow  the  excep- 
tions that  are  made  in  the  paper  read — the  verb  "to  be,"  and  perhaps 
"have"  and  "  has,"  though  my  practice  has  been  not  to  allow  the  use 
of  them  very  much,  because  the  advantage  of  clinging  to  the  past 
tense  seemed  on  the  whole  to  be  greater  than  the  disadvantage  of 
excluding  the  verb  "to  be"  for  the  first  year;  that  is,  letting  such 
ideas  be  expressed  by  signs  rather  than  by  language,  so  that  the  verb 
shall,  without  modification  of  its  form,  express  but  a  single  idea. 

Miss  Shrom:  I  ask  Miss  Wright  to  please  give  an  example  or  two 
of  the  form  of  question  she  has  in  mind  at  present.  A  great  many 
questions,  I  think,  can  be  stated  by  using  the  past  tense  already  re- 
ferred to. 

Miss  Wright:  Anything  that  is  wanted  in  the  school-room  I  have 
always  required  them  to  ask  for,  or  if  they  may  have  it,  whatever  it 
is.  As  soon  as  they  understand  anything  of  language  they  are  taught 
to  ask  questions,  or  to  ask  for  anything  that  they  wish ;  and,  of  course, 
it  must  be  done  in  the  present  tense. 

Miss  Shrom  :  In  that  form  the  very  verbs  that  are  made  exceptions 
here  are  brought  into  use. 

Miss  Wright:  I  will  take  any  verb  that  comes  into  use.  I  would 
not  limit  myself  to  any  tense,  but  would  use  the  present  or  the  past. 

Mr.  Noyes,  of  Minnesota:  What  would  you  do  with  a  large  class 
of  exercises,  which  I  think  are  very  important,  that  of  the  whole 
class  writing,  while  one  is  doing  something?  That  is  the  way  ordi- 
nary children  learn  language.  When  the  sugar  is  passed  at  the  table, 
the  little  child  learns  to  say,  "  Mother,  pass  the  sugar."  We  set  the 
children  to  doing  something,  one  of  them,  or  the  teacher,  and  the 
rest  of  them  looking  on  and  writing  it.     That  is  in  the  present  tense. 

Miss  Wright:  I  should  certainly  ask  the  children  to  give  the  ques- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  89 

tion  themselves:  "  Please  pass  me  the  sugar;"  and  then  the  rest  would 
write  the  same. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  think,  if  you  are  going  to  use  exclusively  the  past 
tense  at  that  very  early  period,  that  the  child  must  become  cramped, 
and  his  style  stiff  and  unnatural.  I  think  there  is  a  tendency,  at  the 
present  time,  to  learn  language  by  the  natural  method,  and  not  in 
the  past  tense;  to  have  the  child  understand  that  while  the  thing  is 
going  on  it  should  be  expressed  in  the  present  tense.  If  there  is  any 
special  reason,  I  would  like  to  know  it,  why  the  natural  method 
should  be  ignored  in  the  case  of  deaf  children  any  more  than  in  the 
case  of  ordinary  speaking  and  hearing  children;  why  they  cannot 
ask  the  question  of  you  in  the  present  tense,  and  not  for  the  first, 
second,  and  third  years  in  the  past  tense;  and  then,  furthermore,  why 
children  may  not  be  encouraged  to  read,  as  many  of  them  do,  in  the 
papers,  and  in  the  little  books,  to  catch  up  sentences  in  the  present 
tense,  and  not  be  obliged  to  put  them  in  the  past  tense.  Why  shall 
we  leave  the  natural  method,  and  confine  ourselves  to  this  particular 
form  for  the  first  and  second  years? 

Mr.  Walker:  I  call  upon  Mr.  Job  Williams,  of  Connecticut,  to 
answer  Mr.  Noyes'  question. 

Mr.  Job  Williams:  I  do  not  know  as  I  can  answer  it  very  briefly; 
but  I  should  like  to  take  a  few  minutes  to  answer  it.  In  the  first 
place,  I  would  say  this:  that  we  may  as  well  make  up  our  minds  at 
the  beginning,  that  it  is  utterly  impossible  to  teach  the  whole  English 
language  at  one  time.  The  great  difficulty  with  teachers— especially 
with  young  teachers — is,  that  they  are  not  willing  to  go  slow  enough. 
We  do  not  realize  sufficiently  how  very  great  the  obstacles  are,  that 
are  in  the  way  of  a  deaf  child  learning  language.  We  must  start  at 
the  very  foundation.  The  question  is,  how  in  the  long  run  we  can 
accomplish  the  best  results;  not  wThat  apparent  results  we  can  get  into 
a  week,  six  weeks,  six  months,  or  a  year,  but  what  is  going  to  produce 
the  best  and  most  permanent  results,  to  be  the  most  solid  foundation 
on  which  a  child  can  build. 

It  is  a  good  principle,  and  one  to  which  we  ought  to  stick  closely, 
that  we  shall  introduce  difficulties  one  at  a  time.  On  that  ground, 
the  first  year  I  would  introduce  but  a  single  tense.  You  may  say 
that  is  not  natural.  It  is  not  as  ordinary  children  talk.  But  the 
tense,  whether  it  is  present  or  past,  used  alone,  is  no  tense  at  all  to  the 
child  that  is  learning  it.  The  incongruity  is  in  your  mind,  and  in 
my  mind,  because  it  does  not  conform  to  language  as  you  and  I  use 
it.  But  it  is  a  root  idea  in  the  child's  mind,  just  as  much  as  the  sign, 
and  that  is  all  there  is  of  it,  until  you  begin  to  teach  the  child  to 
distinguish  between  the  present,  past,  and  future.  And  so  I  say  that 
I  would  begin  with  a  single  tense,  the  present  tense,  and  would  not 
teach  the  past  tense,  and  for  most  important  reasons.  In  the  first 
place,  the  present  tense  contains  the  root  form  of  the  verb,  and  that 
is  the  form  which  you  wish  to  stand  by  the  child.  Then,  in  the  next 
place,  the  root  form  of  the  verb  is  used  in  more  combinations  than 
any  other  form.  Take  for  instance,  the  verb  "  go,"  and  we  have, "  can 
go,"  "must  go,"  "will  go,"  "shall  go,"  etc.;  and  in  questions,  "May  I 
go?"  "Can  I  go?"  "Do  I  go?"  "Shall  I  go?"  "Must  I  go?"  etc.  If 
the  child  is  ever  going  to  learn  the  use  of  the  dictionary,  when  he 
goes  to  look  for  any  word,  it  is  the  root  form  of  the  verb  he  must  look 
for. 

I  will  grant  that  a  teacher  may  take  the  past  tense,  and  may  per- 


90  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

haps  succeed  in  the  long  run  just  as  well.  But  I  think  it  is  better  to 
fix  in  the  mind  of  the  child  in  the  first  place  the  root  form  of  the 
verb,  and  do  not  take  any  other,  because  there  are  so  many  other 
difficulties  the  child  must  contend  with.  He  has  to  learn  nouns  and 
the  difference  between  the  singular  and  the  plural  forms,  pronouns 
with  their  different  forms  of  case  and  number,  adjectives  and  their 
office,  adverbs  and  adverbial  phrases— a  great  many  things,  for  a  mind 
entirely  untrained,  to  remember.  In  addition  to  these,  one  form  of 
the  verb  is  better  than  more  for  a  long  time — the  greater  part  of  a 
year.  So  I  would  begin  with  nouns  in  the  singular  number.  Next 
I  would  introduce  the  intransitive  verb  and  get  the  shortest  possible 
form  of  a  complete  sentence.  On  that  I  would  build  one  step  at  a 
time,  introducing  in  their  order  the  transitive  verb  with  its  object, 
adjectives,  plural  forms,  the  possessive  case,  pronouns,  adverbs,  ad- 
verbial phrases  of  place,  etc.,  but  always  demanding  a  complete  sen- 
tence. 

Adverbial  phrases  should  always  be  taught  as  units:  "A  boy  puts 
his  hat  under  the  tableP  "A  boy  puts  his  hat  on  the  floor."  In  that 
way  the  child  may  be  taught  to  write  correctly  as  far  as  he  can 
write  at  all ;  but  it  is  all  of  the  time  a  limited  and  cramped  language. 
I  know  it;  everybody  else  knows  it;  and  it  seems  unnatural.  But 
wait.  You  have  a  sure  foundation  upon  which  you  can  build.  In 
the  second  year  you  can  introduce  adverbs  of  time;  those  come  in 
with  the  past  tense  and  the  future  tense.  The  child  very  quickly 
brings  the  three  tenses  which  he  has  learned  under  perfect  control  to 
distinguish  accurately  the  difference  in  time,  and  then  he  uses  the 
adverbial  phrases  of  time.  The  sentence  is  built  up  step  by  step;  the 
child  knows  all  of  the  time  just  where  he  is,  and  what  he  has  done; 
and  though  he  may  not  see  all  that  you  see  in  the  gradual  process, 
yet  he  has  absorbed  by  this  constant  practice  in  this  careful,  meth- 
odical way,  these  forms  of  language,  and  they  are  his,  and  he  will  not 
forget  them. 

I  know  that  years  ago,  when  we  used  a  great  deal  more  miscellane- 
ous way  of  teaching,  the  exercises  of  our  pupils  were  full  of  "  deaf 
muteisms."  We  do  not  have  one  now  where  we  had  ten  then.  And 
I  am  perfectly  convinced  that  by  this  careful,  systematic  building  up 
of  sentences,  so  that  the  child  knows  exactly  what  he  can  do  and 
what  he  cannot  do — and  if  an  essential  part  of  a  sentence  is  left  out 
he  knows  it  just  as  quickly  as  you  and  I  do — we  shall  secure  a  better 
foundation,  and  better  permanent  results  than  we  can  by  any  natural 
method,  as  you  may  call  it,  that  can  be  found. 

I  know  that  by  the  natural  method  you  will  find  a  few  pupils  here 
and  there  will  pick  up  words  and  phrases,  and  will  seem  to  make 
astonishing  progress  in  language.  But  they  are  not  as  secure  of  their 
results;  and  there  will  be  only  two,  three,  or  four  in  a  class  that  will 
make  that  progress.  But  if  you  have  this  careful,  systematic  way  of 
building,  you  can  take  almost  the  whole  class  along  with  you,  so  that 
they  will  all  have  a  secure  hold  on  those  forms  of  language.  We  must 
be  willing  to  wait  and  build  slowly  and  carefully.  The  more  com- 
plicated forms  will  come  in  due  time,  and  they  will  come  surely. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  would  not  be  understood  as  implying  that  I  would, 
if  I  may  use  this  illustration,  take  all  kinds  of  fruit  out  of  the  basket 
and  pour  them  into  the  child's  mind,  irrespective  of  any  order;  but 
I  would  encourage  a  child,  if  he  was-  going  into  the  forest,  and  was 
interested  in  looking  at  the  trees,  to  learn  their  names.    I  would  not 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  91 

say  to  him,  "There  is  an  oak  tree;  and  you  must  not  know  anything 
about  any  other  tree  than  the  oak  there;"  or,  "Thereis  a  maple  tree, 
and  you  must  not  have  anything  to  do  with  that;"  or  a  birch  or  an 
elm  or  a  willow;  but  I  would  let  him  learn  the  names  of  as  many  trees 
as  he  was  interested  in.  And  if  I  felt  that  he  was  learning  the  names 
of  all  the  trees  in  the  forest  I  would  try  to  have  him  classify  them  by 
their  bark,  and  shape,  and  so  forth,  and  by  and  by  he  would  learn 
that  one  was  an  elm,  the  other  an  oak,  the  other  a  hickory,  and  so 
forth.  To  say  that  he  must  learn  but  just  one  kind  of  tree  because 
he  has  not  got  far  enough,  is  a  stiff  and  unnatural  method.  You  may 
say  here  is  a  child  with  a  body  to  be  built  up;  and  he  must  eat  noth- 
ing but  meat  and  potatoes  all  of  the  time.  That  is  not  natural.  He 
wants  a  variety  of  food  to  build  up  muscle,  blood,  sinew,  and  brain. 
And  so  with  mind. 

I  think  one  difficulty  in  some  of  our  schools  is  this:  we  begin,  if  I 
may  speak,  at  the  big  end  of  the  tree,  and  we  try  to  teach  the  science 
of  language,  instead  of  waiting  until  the  child  has  language  enough 
so  that  we  can  show  him  where  the  science  comes  in.  You  cannot 
generalize  until  you  have  something  to  generalize.  You  want  to 
know  something  about  the  names  of  different  things,  and  to  have 
enough  material  to  work  upon.  I  notice  that  our  little  children,  and 
we  have  a  good  many  Swedes,  Danes,  Norwegians,  and  Scandina- 
vians in  our  State,  mingle  in  the  streets  with  other  children,  and  pick 
up  the  English  language  remarkably  quick.  The  parents  will  be 
four,  six,  or  eight  years  learning  the  language,  and  then  cannot  speak 
as  well  as  the  children  can  in  a  year  or  a  year  and  a  half.  How  do 
they  get  it?  They  do  get  it,  and  they  use  it  grammatically,  too.  They 
do  not  learn  the  present  tense,  and  then  by  and  by  the  past  tense, 
and  then  by  and  by  the  pluperfect  tense;  but  they  pick  it  up  from 
time  to  time  and  see  it  in  its  connection.  And  when  they  have  this 
language,  and  they  are  put  into  school,  they  begin  to  distinguish 
between  the  past  and  present  tense.  And  a  child  that  has  learned  out 
of  books,  or  in  school  exercises,  will  take  great  pleasure  in  picking  out 
of  a  sentence,  or  out  of  a  book,  those  verbs  that  are  in  the  present, 
and  those  that  are  in  the  future  tense.  We  want  to  give  them  some- 
thing that  comes  naturally  and  easily,  before  we  begin  to  philosophize 
and  teach  them  grammatically. 

I  wish  to  be  understood  that  I  do  not  believe  in  trying  to  make  a 
child  classify  all  of  the  trees  in  the  forest  at  once;  but  if  a  child  is 
interested  in  a  tree,  let  him  know  its  name,  and  by  and  by  when 
you  can  generalize,  then  do  so.  Let  the  children  in  our  schools  learn 
somewhat  after  the  natural  method  of  ordinary  children  m  the 
acquisition  of  language.  You  will  find  that  Indian  children  have 
just  as  peculiar  idioms  as  our  deaf  children  have.  Some  of  you  may 
have  seen  within  the  last  three  or  four  months  a  letter  that  appeared 
in  the  "Youth's  Companion,"  written  by  an  Indian  boy  sixteen  years 
of  age,  a  pupil  in  an  Indian  school.  He  was  considered  a  boy  of 
remarkable  progress;  and  yet,  right  in  that  letter,  you  will  find  just 
as  peculiar  "isms"  by  that  Indian  boy  who  was  never  taught  by 
signs  at  all,  as  you  can  find  in  the  ordinary  conversation  of  our  deal 
and  dumb  children  in  the  first  stages  of  their  progress.  _ 

If  you  send  your  child  out  to  learn  the  French  language  in  the 
quickest,  the  surest,  and  the  best  manner,  you  put  him  into  a  trench 
family.  And  you  would  not  say,  "  Now,  you  will  speak  in  b  rencn  in 
the  present  tense  for  the  first  six  months,  and  then  m  the  past  tense. 


92  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

The  minds  of  deaf  children  are  very  much  like  the  minds  of  ordinary 
speaking  children.  We  cannot  expect  to  advance  deaf  children 
much  faster  than  average  hearing  children.  If  it  is  a  good  thing  for 
speaking  and  hearing  children  to  learn  Latin,  French,  Greek,  or 
EnglislAn  that  way,  why  is  it  not  good  for  the  deaf  and  dumb? 
Their  minds  are  very  much  the  same;  and  we  have  observed  in 
many  cases  that  when  they  have  had  this  opportunity,  that  they 
come  out  in  as  good  a  condition,  so  far  as  I  am  able  to  discover,  as 
the  others.  I  have  worked  under  the  stiff,  cast-iron  method,  and  have 
seen  its  results;  and  I  have  sometimes  felt  like  asking  the  humble 
pardon  of  some  in  the  profession  to-day,  who  were  my  pupils,  because 
I  ground  them  through  that  method,  the  fault  of  which  I  know  they 
now  realize  as  much  as  I  do. 

I  want  deaf  mutes  to  be  free  and  easy,  and  learn  things  as  their 
brothers  and  sisters  do  who  can  hear  and  speak.  I  think  the  rule 
which  will  apply  to  hearing  children  is  not  entirely  deficient  in  its 
application  to  the  deaf  and  dumb. 

Mr.  Williams:  In  regard  to  this  question  of  learning  language  by 
hearing  children,  and  why  deaf  mutes  may  not  learn  the  same  way, 
it  seems  to  me  that  the  whole  difference  lies  just  in  the  fact  of  their 
difference  of  condition,  and  the  consequent  impossibility  of  having 
the  same  amount  of  practice.  If,  by  any  process  under  the  sun,  you 
could  give  the  deaf  mute  child  the  same  amount  of  practice  that  you 
can  give  the  hearing  child,  there  is  no  reason  why  that  child  should 
not  learn  language  in  just  the  same  way,  and  just  as  correctly. 

Mr.  Noyes:  So  far  as  it  goes,  why  is  not  the  practice  of  the  deaf 
and  dumb  just  as  good  as  the  practice  of  the  hearing  child? 

Mr.  Williams:  It  is  not,  because  if  our  hearing  children  could  get 
no  more  practice  than  the  deaf  and  dumb  children  get,  they  would 
not  get  language  in  that  helter-skelter  way.  But  we  need  to  give 
them  help,  to  cut  off  difficulties,  and  to  make  language  as  simple  as 
possible.  If  you  begin  by  teaching  them  by  the  natural  method,  you 
have  a  great  variety  of  forms  of  construction  right  off.  The  child  is 
perfectly  bewildered,  and  very  soon  his  language  is  all  mixed  up,  and 
nothing  is  clear  in  his  own  mind  or  to  anybody  else.  You  may  say 
that  the  other  way  is  a  stilted  way.  So  it  is;  granted.  The  pupil's 
language  will  not  be  just  like  the  language  of  a  hearing  child  for  a 
good  while.  But  just  so  far  as  he  goes,  his  language  will  be  correct. 
He  knows  it  is  right,  and  others  know  it  is  right;  and  he  can  learn 
very  quickly  to  express  his  ideas  in  accurate  language.  Now  give 
him  time  to  grow.  Why  do  not  mothers  take  young  children  and 
begin  to  feed  them  right  off  on  meat  and  potatoes,  sour  apples,  cran- 
berries, and  everything  else?  It  won't  do.  It  is  not  good  for  the 
children.  But  if  you  give  a  child  a  simple  diet  for  awhile,  and  allow 
it  to  gain  strength  step  by  step  until  its  physical  powers  get  a  little 
stronger,  you  may  by  degrees  increase  the  variety  and  the  child  will 
thrive  under  it.  I  believe  it  is  a  good  deal  so  with  language.  You 
cannot  teach  the  whole  of  the  English  language  at  once.  You  may 
try  but  you  cannot  do  it.    [Applause.] 

Mr.  Crouter,  of  Philadelphia:  Our  pupils  in  the  institution  at 
Philadelphia  have  no  form  or  style  except  as  they  are  taught  by  the 
teachers.  If  they  are  taught  the  present  tense,  they  will  use  the  pres- 
ent tense.    If  they  are  taught  the  past  tense,  they  will  use  that  form. 

I  agree  very  much  with  Professor  Williams  as  to  the  best  method 
of  teaching  language  to  primary  classes,  except  as  to  the  tense.     It  is 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  93 

our  custom  in  Philadelphia  to  teach  the  past  tense  first;  and  we  do  it 
for  this  reason:  In  the  past  tense  the  form  of  the  verb  does  not 
change.  Take  the  verb  "struck,"  for  instance:  "The  boy  struck  the 
table,"  or  "  A  man  struck  a  dog;"  the  form  is  always  the  same.  If  you 
use  the  present  form  you  say  "strikes,"  or  "is  striking;"  introducing 
difficulties  with  the  present  tense  which  you  escape  if  you  use  the 
past. 

Mr.  Williams:  You  do  not  need  to  introduce  two  forms  of  the 
present  tense. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  think  of  the  two  forms  of  the  present  tense  I  should 
prefer  the  other.  You  would  say,  "The  horse  eats  grass;"  the  child 
would  say,  "The  horse  is  eating  grass."  If  I  understand  you,  you 
would  teach  the  child  to  say,  "The  horse  eats  grass." 

Mr.  Williams:  Yes,  sir;  it  is  merely  a  root  idea  in  the  child's 
mind,  and  nothing  more. 

Mr.  Crouter:  You  spoke  of  the  use  of  the  dictionary.  If  the  child 
was  to  turn  to  a  dictionary  for  a  root  form,  it  would  get  "to  eat;"  it 
would  not  get  "eats."  You  might  as  well  give  it  "ate"  as  "eats,"  so 
far  as  the  dictionary  is  concerned.  And  we  prefer  the  past  tense  for 
that  simple  reason.  And  for  another  reason,  that  in  our  work  we 
cling  very  much  to  action  writing.  The  act  is  performed  and  fin- 
ished in  the  presence  of  the  child.  It  is  not  an  habitual  act.  The  act 
is  linished  and  we  give  the  correct  form  of  the  word  at  once. 

Mr.  Williams:  You  ascribe  to  the  child  a  difficulty  which  is  in 
your  mind,  but  which  has  no  existence  in  his.  To  him  the  verb  has 
only  a  root  idea  until  he  is  taught  to  distinguish  the  different  forms 
to  express  time. 

Mr.  Crouter:  If  that  is  all,  we  might  as  well  give  the  past  as  the 
present  tense. 

Mr.  Williams:  That  is  true;  so  far  as  that  one  point  is  concerned 
one  would  do  just  as  well  as  the  other,  but  there  remains  many  rea- 
sons in  favor  of  the  use  of  the  present  tense. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  agree,  too,  with  Miss  Wright  as  to  the  desirability 
of  introducing  very  early  the  present  form  in  asking  questions.  I 
think  that  is  very  desirable.  I  would,  however,  limit  it,  and  would 
not  attempt  to  teach  a  child  all  forms  of  questions.  I  would  not 
think  of  introducing  the  future,  the  present,  and  the  past  tense  all  at 
the  same  time.  I  would  use  one  first;  and  I  would  ground  the  child 
thoroughly  in  that  one  form.  We  use  the  past,  and  Professor  Will- 
iams uses  the  present;  that  is  the  only  difference.  Then  we  teach 
the  verbs,  so  far  as  asking  questions  is  concerned:  "to  be,"  "  to  have," 
"to  like,"  and  "to  love,"  and  that  is  about  all. 

Mr.  Noyes:  In  your  articulation  work  do  you  always  confine  your- 
self to  those  tenses,  or  do  you  teach  just  as  ordinary  children  are 
taught  in  the  public  school  ? 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  our  school,  in  Pennsylvania,  we  have  two  oral 
classes,  so  far  as  school-room  work  is  concerned,  and  the  same  forms 
are  observed  as  in  the  teaching  of  the  pupils  in  the  sign  classes, 
although  they  are  taught  orally.  The  forms  are  almost  identical,  and 
the  results  are  very  gratifying. 

I  agree  with  Mr.  Williams  that  it  is  very  important  to  lay  a  firm 
foundation,  and  to  let  that  be  very  simple.  You  cannot  make  it  too 
simple.  [Hear,  hear.]  The  difficulty  is  that  teachers  give  their 
pupils  too  many  forms.  They  want  to  get  over  too  much  work,  and 
the  result  is  that  the  pupils,  in  trying  to  use  those  forms,  in  none  of 


94  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

which  have  they  ever  been  sufficiently  grounded,  blunder,  and  we 
have  the  troubles  and  the  terrible  mistakes  in  the  end. 

Mr.  McFarland:  In  this  battle  of  giants  upon  this  high  and  mighty 
plane  I  have  not  any  theories.  But  I  want  to  ask  a  question  that 
continually  troubles  me.  I  wonder  whether,  in  teaching  language  to 
deaf  mutes,  we  are  trying  to  make  them  acquainted  with  all  the 
details  of  a  vast  and  complicated  system  or  mechanism  of  words,  and 
the  relation  of  all  its  varying  parts  as  a  science,  or  whether  we  are 
trying  to  fit  these  particular  children  to  say,  "I  want  some  water,"  or 
to  understand,  "Bring  me  some  wood,"  or  "  Where  is  John?"  And  I 
wonder  why  it  is  that  so  many  children  in  the  schools  taught  by  this 
method  or  by  that  method,  whether  the  past  or  the  present  tense  may 
be  used,  get  so  dreadfully  sick  of  their  language  lessons?  Their 
slates  are  all  chalked  up  every  day,  and  they  do  not  see  why,  and 
the  teachers  are  never  satisfied.  They  fix  it  over  and  over  again, 
until  the  language  becomes  the  terror  of  their  lives,  almost.  It  is 
simply  because  they  are  grinding  with  the  bricks,  and  not  putting 
up  the  building.  A  workman  sitting  down  and  squaring  off  each 
brick  takes  off  so  much  of  this  corner  and  so  much  of  that,  because 
by  and  by  it  is  going  to  appear  up  there  on  the  corner.  But  he 
does  not  care  very  much  about  that  brick.  And  I  wonder  why  I 
find  pupils  from  all  of  these  schools,  who  have  been  three,  four,  or 
five  years  under  instruction,  by  one  or  the  other  of  these  systems, 
who  will  sit  dowm  and  w^rite  a  note-sheet  page  about  anything,  and 
wrho,  if  they  have  been  taught  in  the  present  tense,  will  perpetually 
write  in  the  present  tense.  You  may  call  their  attention  to  the  word, 
and  they  will  change  it  and  understand  it;  but  that  habit  they  have 
absorbed,  and  have  become  so  saturated  with  the  first  forms  that  they 
got,  that  they  will  stay  there  forever,  and  you  cannot  rinse  or  wash 
them  out.  I  wonder  why  these  things  are?  I  cannot  see  behind  all 
these  things,  and  I  have  no  theories  about  it;  but  these  things  are 
perpetually  coming  up  to  me,  and  I  wonder  what  the  objection  is  to 
my  taking  a  deaf  mute  child  into  my  school,  and  beginning  by  writ- 
ing on  the  board  or  spelling  to  him,  to  get  him  acquainted  with  the 
letters  so  that  he  knows  writing  and  spelling;  and  telling  him  to 
bring  me  the  slate,  and  then  giving  him  by  signs  or  in  any  possible 
way  what  I  mean,  and  point  out  the  signification  of  each  word.  It 
means  something  to  him.  He  is  doing  something  which  he  is  inter- 
ested in.  He  knows  that  he  is  to  bring  that  slate;  and  that  language 
represents  to  him  precisely  the  thing  which  you  want  him  to  do.  He 
understands  that  language,  and  he  will  stick  to  it.  "  Bring  me  some- 
thing" always  means  after  that,  "bring  me  something."  What  is  the 
objection  to  my  doing  that?  Why  must  I  set  up  before  them  a  more 
complicated  system  of  things,  starting  them  in  at  one  corner  and  say 
to  them,  this  is  the  block  you  are  to  hew  upon  for  the  present?  Why 
can  I  not  teach  them  in  the  same  way  that  I  teach  other  children? 

Mr.  Crouter:  You  can  do  it. 

The  Chairman:  the  time  has  now  arrived  for  a  change  of  subject. 
The  next  subject  will  be  arithmetic. 

Mr.  Booth:  The  work  before  the  section  will  now  be  the  develop- 
ment of  the  problem  as  it  is  before  us  in  the  class-room  with  a  class 
of  deaf  mutes.  Indeed,  our  entire  work  in  arithmetic  is  the  develop- 
ment upon  the  mind  of  the  pupil,  of  the  problem,  and  the  teaching 
of  its  solution.  And  I  may  say,  that  though  we  spent  considerable 
time  upon  notation  and  numeration  this  morning,  I  would  not  have 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   TE^E  DEAF. 


95 


the  impression  prevail  that  all  of  notation  and  numeration  is  to  be 
taught  before  the  processes  of  addition  and  subtraction  are  begun. 
Notation  and  numeration  should  be  a  growth,  brought  out  and 
developed  by  necessity;  necessity  existing  in  the  solution  of  prob- 
lems that  are  presented  to  the  class,  or  to  the  child. 

Addition  and  subtraction  should  be  taught  together,  the  one  process 
as  the  complement  of  the  other.  The  first  problem  presented — and  all 
processes  must  be  taught  in  problems— may  be  one  in  subtraction. 
It  is  a  very  easy  matter  for  the  teacher  to  make  a  mistake  in  teaching 
the  simpler  processes  with  numbers,  resulting  in  a  total  misconcep- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  child  of  the  nature  of  such  processes.  It  will 
not  do  to  subtract  two  things  from  five  things  and  leave  three  things, 
the  child  looking  on  and  seeing  in  succession,  the  five  things,  the  two 
things,  and  the  three  things  as  they  may  be  pointed  out  to  him.  No 
problem  has  been  presented  to  him,  and  he  has  solved  none.  Figures 
may  be  shown  and  taught  as  representing  all  that  has  been  done  and 
seen;  if  so,  so  much  the  greater  is  the  mistake.  The  proper  presen- 
tation of  the  problem  will  show  clearly  and  positively  the  existence 
of  the  unknown  quantity,  as  also  the  purpose  of  the  problem  to  deter- 
mine it.    To  this  end,  some  art  must  be  exercised  by  the  teacher. 

Presenting  the  problem,  two  from  five,  how  many  left?  the  teacher 
will  show  the  five  things  and  cover  them;  he  will  then  expose  two  of 
the  things  and  take  them  away.  The  desire  will  at  once  become 
general  to  know  how  many  are  left  under  the  cover.  The  art  of  com- 
putation will  be  brought  into  exercise,  and  the  unknown,  or  unseen, 
quantity  will  be  determined.  This  is  subtraction.  It  cannot  be 
explained;  it  can  only  be  seen,  and  being  seen,  it  may  be  understood. 
It  is  a  game,  and  it  will  be  entered  into  with  all  the  interest  and  zest 
of  which  the  child  nature  is  capable. 

Addition  is  taught  in  the  same  way.  The  known  quantities  will  be 
seen,  leaving  the  unknown  quantities  unseen  and  to  be  determined. 
All  the  combinations  with  smaller  numbers  should  be  taught  thus  in 
problems,  and  as  mental  exercises.  Figures  should  not  be  used  by  the 
pupil,  unless  to  indicate  the  "  answers,"  until  the  processes  become 
so  complex  that  the  mind  fails  to  retain  and  follow  them.  Figures, 
and  operations  with  figures,  may  then  be  taught  with  little  danger  of 
misconception  of  their  meaning  and  their  purpose. 

Using  the  decimal  system  of  grouping  or  bunching  quantities,  it  is  a 
comparatively  easy  task  teaching  "carrying"  in  addition  and  "bor- 
rowing "  in  subtraction.  It  will  be  sufficient,  perhaps,  to  illustrate  the 
latter.  If  it  be  required  to  subtract  twenty-five  from  fifty-three,  the 
quantity  fifty -three  will  be  shown  as  five  tens  and  three  ones: 


0 

0 

o 

0 

0 

0 

0 

o 

0 

0 

0 

() 

o 

() 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

o 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

() 

0 

0 

0   0   0   0   0 
0   0   0   0   0 


o  o 
o 


Then  it  will  be  covered.  As  a  quantity,  it  is  known  to  every  mem- 
ber of  the  class.  Memory  of  the  form,  and  knowledge  of  the  character 
of  the  number,  make  the  cover  practically  transparent.  The  quan- 
tity is  approached  with  the  purpose,  clearly  understood  by  all  the 
class,  of  taking  from  it  the  quantity  twenty-five.  It  may  not  all 
be  taken  at  once;  five  will  be  taken  first.    Trouble  is  foreseen;  there 


96  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

are  but  three  of  the  kind  wanted.  They  are  uncovered,  and  the 
impossibility  of  taking  five  from  three  is  at  once  apparent.  There  is 
but  one  course  open ;  it  is  to  break  up  a  ten.  This  is  done.  Five  ones 
are  exposed,  and  taken  away.  At  this  point  the  attention  of  the  class 
is  directed  to  the  figure  5,  and  it  is  suggested  that  the  quantity  five 
(tens)  no  longer  exist,  that  it  has  become  four.  This  is  perfectly 
clear,  and  all  see  it  as  necessarily  true.  The  next  step  is  to  uncover 
two  tens,  and  take  them  from  the  four  tens  that  are  known  to  still 
remain  behind  the  cover.  The  conditions  of  the  problem  have  been 
carried  out,  and  it  remains  to  determine  the  unknown— the  so  far 
unseen— quantity.  No  aid  should  be  given  further  than  this,  and 
no  suggestions  should  be  offered.  With  a  clear  idea  of  the  end  in 
view,  and  a  strong  desire  to  attain  it,  the  pupils  may  be  left  to  the 
figures  and  their  own  devices  to  discover  the  way  to  such  attainment. 
If  they  are  ready  for  the  problem,  they  will  have  no  difficulty  in 
solving  it. 

Carrying  in  addition  may  be  shown  as  merely  a  process  of  bunch- 
ing tens.  No  number  higher  than  nine  can  be  represented  by  our 
system  of  notation.  Whatever  may  be  the  denomination  of  the  units, 
as  soon  as  they  become  ten  they  are  changed  to  one  of  the  next 
denomination  larger. 

After  much  practice  in  the  processes  of  addition  and  subtraction, 
the  combinations  in  figures  may  be  taught  in  tables,  though  in  most 
cases  it  will  not  be  found  necessary. 

It  is  important  that  the  problem  be  developed  systematically.  The 
problem  exists  in  nature  independent  of  text-book,  and  independent 
of  figures  used  in  the  operation  for  its  solution.  If  I  have  had  any 
success  in  teaching  arithmetic  I  attribute  it  to  this,  that  I  have 
required  my  pupils  to  illustrate  the  conditions  of  problems  so  far  as  it 
has  been  possible  to  illustrate  them ;  and  in  that  way  figures  are  not 
only  significant,  but  the  operation  with  figures  becomes  significant  of 
the  process  with  numbers  or  with  quantities. 

I  will  speak  of  a  few  of  the  difficulties  that  are  met  with  in  teach- 
ing subtraction,  in  using  figures  alone,  and  I  think  your  experience 
will  confirm  mine  in  what  I  may  show  you. 

How  often  have  we  seen  our  pupils  with  such  a  problem  as  this: 

102 
202 

Given  them  for  subtraction,  actually  perform  it,  and  have  for  a  result 
900? 

It  has  been  my  experience,  as,  I  think,  it  has  been  yours,  in  trying 
to  get  pupils  to  illustrate  problems,  that  their  working  of  them  will 
show  that  they  have  an  entire  misconception  of  the  process  that  the 
operation  is  intended  to  represent.  And  in  order  to  show  that,  as  it 
really  occurs  in  our  school-rooms,  I  will  ask  Mr.  Spruit  to  act  as  a 
pupil  for  a  few  moments,  and  do  just  what  our  pupils  often  do  when 
asked  to  show  their  understanding  of  the  problems  that  they  work. 
I  will  give  to  him,  he  being  one  of  a  class  of  fifteen  or  sixteen  pupils, 
all  acquainted  with  addition  and  subtraction,  and  able  to  add  and 
subtract  figures,  the  following  problem:  u  Walter  S.  has  nine  blocks; 
if  he  gives  away  six  blocks,  how  many  will  he  have  left?"  I  give 
my  class  that  problem,  and  among  them,  Mr.  Spruit,  and  he  will 
work  it  on  the  board  in  the  usual  way. 


OF    AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  97 

Mr.  Spruit  wrote  the  problem  upon  the  board  as  follows: 

9 
0 
3 

We  have  no  means  of  telling  by  that  that  he  does  not  understand 
that  as  a  process,  and  we  are  inclined  to  think  that  he  does,  and  he 
may  write  a  sentence:  "I  have  three  blocks  left."  Now,  I,  as  the 
teacher,  am  a  little  skeptical,  and' inclined  to  doubt  whether  my 
pupils  understand  all  of  these  operations  that  they  perform  so  readily, 
and  I  ask  the  pupil  to  explain  it  with  the  blocks. 

Mr.  Spruit  being  furnished  with  the  blocks,  first  counted  out  nine 
to  represent  the  nine  that  Walter  S.  had;  then  counted  out  six  more 
other  blocks  to  represent  the  six  given  away;  and  counted  out  three 
more  other  blocks  to  represent  the  blocks  remaining;  refusing  to  take 
the  six  blocks  out  of  the  first  nine. 

This  shows  the  meaninglessness  of  this  operation  as  understood  by 
the  pupil.  That  is,  it  does  not  mean  anything  that  is  possible  in 
nature. 

Mr.  Job  Williams:  What  portion  of  the  class  would  you  expect 
to  be  as  brilliant  as  that? 

Mr.  Booth:  If  they  had  not  been  taught  in  the  way  I  did  teach,  I 
think  that  the  greater  part  of  the  class  would  be  just  about  as  brilliant 
as  that. 

Mr.  Williams:  My  experience  does  not  agree  with  yours  in  that 
line. 

Mr.  Booth:  If  the  pupil  is  taught  figures  he  will  do  something  of 
that  kind  if  he  is  required  to  illustrate.  The  pupil  cannot  be  expected 
himself  to  see  that  six  is  one  part  of  nine  and  that  three  is  the  other 
part.  If  figures  could  be  made  to  somehow  show  that  a  part  of  nine 
was  six  and  the  other  part  was  three,  then  to  take  away  the  six  and 
leave  the  three,  that  would  exactly  represent  the  process  that  he 
really  goes  through. 

This  is  the  way  that  I  should  teach  that.  I  will  call  upon  Mr. 
Spruit  again  and  begin  at  the  other  end.  I  would  show  him  the 
nine  blocks,  the  known  quantity,  because  it  has  been  seen;  also 
another  known  quantity  will  be  presented;  and  he  is  told  to  put  both 
of  them  upon  the  slate,  and  he  does  so.  The  problem  is  presented ; 
the  conditions  have  been  stated  and  acted  out;  and  now  comes  the 
problem,  the  determining  of  the  unknown  quantity,  which  I  will 
leave  it  to  him  to  determine.  He  does  determine  it,  and  he  is  certain 
of  the  correctness  of  the  result.  Now,  I  submit  that  he  knows  just 
what  every  one  of  those  figures  represent;  that  they  represent  the 
quantities;  and  he  understands  at  the  same  time  the  relations  that 
these  quantities  bear  to  one  another;  and  understands  the  process 
that  has  been  gone  through  with,  which  is  a  process  in  subtraction. 
[Applause.] 

Going  back  to  addition,  and  beginning  even  with  "2  and  2  make 
4,"  I  will  ask  the  pupils  to  write  what  they  see;  that  is,  to  put  down 
figures  to  represent  known  or  seen  quantities.  They  see  J;  and  I  ask 
how  many  there  are,  and  they  reply  2.  And  I  say,  "Well,  put  it 
down  on  your  slates  somewhere,  I  don't  care  where  or  how."  They 
put  it  down.  Then  they  say,  "  How  many?"  "  2  more?  "  "  Well,"  I 
say,  "put  them  down."  And  they  put  down  g  °;  and  they  all  see 
that  2  and  2  make  4.  I  show  by  my  face  that  I  want  one  expression 
7d 


98  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

for  the  whole  quantity;  and  they  write  4,  and  they  say  4;  and  that  is 
the  problem  solved. 

In  teaching  the  addition  table,  I  would  not  set  the  tables  for  them 
to  memorize.  I  would  teach  the  tables,  but  I  should  require  them  to 
make  them;  and  should  require  them  to  determine  the  complement- 
ary quantity  and  character  in  this  case;  and  so  through.  I  should 
require  them  to  make  all  of  the  details  in  addition,  subtraction,  ana 
multiplication.  I  should  require  them  to  discover  them,  and  if  they 
lost  or  forgot  them,  to  rediscover  them.  Then  they  know  the  process 
of  addition,  of  subtraction,  of  multiplication,  and  of  division. 

I  have  not  yet  spoken  of  carrying  in  addition,  and  it  would  seem 
almost  unnecessary  to  do  so,  having  shown  borrowing  in  subtraction; 
because  carrying  in  addition  is  simply  the  reverse  of  that.  But  it  is 
easily  shown  with  splints.  I,  in  my  class,  have  a  great  deal  of  writing 
of  problems.  I  perform  an  acting  problem  before  them,  and  they, 
seeing  me,  write  the  conditions  as  they  see  them. 

A  Member:  Do  you  require  any  written  solution  of  the  problem? 

Mr.  Booth:  No,  sir;  I  do  not.  I  require  them  to  illustrate  a  prob- 
lem by  simply  writing  it  upon  the  slates,  such  as  six  blocks  from 
nine  blocks  leaves  three  blocks. 

Mr.  Connor:  How  long  do  you  carry  on  this  illustration,  to  the 
point  that  you  go  directly  to  figures? 

Mr.  Booth:  If  I  am  satisfied  that  my  class  understand  thoroughly 
the  processes  with  numbers,  from  that  time  I  allow  them  to  use  fig- 
ures to  represent  that  process.  I  do  not  require  them  to  illustrate 
after  I  am  satisfied  upon  that  point. 

A  Member:  How  long  has  your  experience  proven  to  you  that  you 
would  have  to  continue  teaching  in  this  way  before  you  could  drop 
illustration  and  take  up  figures  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  My  present  class  I  took  at  the  end  of  three  years,  and 
have  had  it  three  years.  It  was  three  years  old  when  I  took  it.  I 
have  had  to  use  these  splints  but  a  very  few  times;  about  two  months, 
perhaps.  But  I  require  them  in  all  their  problems  in  multiplication, 
and  in  division  especially,  to  illustrate  them  by  splints  and  by  marks; 
principally  by  marks  upon  the  large  slates.  This  method  of  illustra- 
ting is  the  development  of  the  last  three  or  four  years  in  my  experi- 
ence in  teaching,  and  three  of  those  years  have  been  with  this  class, 
which  is  a  comparatively  advanced  class.  I  have  used  the  method 
with  younger  classes,  but  to  a  very  limited  extent. 

Mr.  W.  R.  Argo,  of  Kentucky :  I  cannot  agree  with  the  gentleman  as 
to  the  solution  of  the  problem.  In  our  school  we  would  consider  that 
a  boy  could  not  work  an  example  at  all  if  he  could  not  explain  every 
part  of  it.  And  if  a  boy  comes  with  the  figures  upon  his  slate,  and 
the  correct  answer,  but  no  written  explanation,  we  send  him  back 
just  as  if  he  had  not  worked  the  example  at  all,  and  we  give  him  a 
zero  for  it.  We  consider  that  if  a  boy  cannot  explain  what  he  has 
done,  and  cannot  explain  it  in  good  English,  that  he  does  not  under- 
stand it.  I  have  been  very  glad  to  hear  Mr.  Booth  upon  notation 
and  numeration,  and  have  fully  agreed  with  him  in  everything  so 
far;  but  in  this  I  cannot  agree  with  him  at  all. 

Mr.  Booth:  My  experience  in  that  respect  and  in  that  connection 
is  this:  That  if  I  attempted  to  teach  the  forms  that  are  usually  taught, 
and  that  must  be  taught,  that  they  learn  those  forms  in  a  mechanical 
way,  and  learn  to  use  them  in  the  same  way. 

Mr.  Argo:  In  a  case  of  interest  or  insurance,  some  very  compli- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  99 

cated  example,  how  could  the  pupil  indicate  all  these  operations  with 
blocks,  or  splints,  or  any  other  sort  of  appliances? 

Mr.  Booth:  He  cannot  do  it.  When  you  have  arrived  at  that 
point,  the  pupil  has  acquired  the  ability  to  use  the  figures.  I  have 
pupils  in  my  class  who  have  never  been  taught  interest  excepting  as 
I  have  shown  it  to  them  in  connection  with  my  own  business.  If  I 
have  loaned  $100,  and  have  a  note  for  the  same,  I  show  it  to  my  class, 
and  tell  them  something  about  it,  and  they  see  the  amount  of  interest 
that  is  earned;  and  I  tell  them  that  I  get  for  one  dollar  ten  cents  per 
year,  and  explain  it  in  that  way ;  and  they  are  able  to  work  problems 
in  interest — at  least  they  have  worked  problems  in  interest  without 
any  special  instruction  in  mechanical  processes  with  figures— in  com- 
puting years  and  months,  but  not  days. 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark,  of  Arkansas:  It  has  been  a  long  time  since  I  have 
taught  elementary  arithmetic,  but  I  have  had  a  great  deal  of  expe- 
rience in  beginning  classes  with  fractions.  I  started  out  by  putting 
upon  the  slate,  for  example,  three  quarters  of  a  pie,  and  the  boy  would 
go  through  a  form  something  like  this:  I  would  ask  him  what  that 
meant;  and  he  would  tell  me  that  the  figure  4  showed  how  many 
parts  it  was  divided  into,  and  the  figure  3  how  many  of  those  parts 
were  taken.  And  I  thought  he  understood  that  fraction  pretty  well. 
But  after  awhile  I  found  that  some  stupid  boys  could  not  get  that 
form  even;  and  I  drew  a  line,  dividing  it  for  them,  and  then  asked 
them  if  they  could  come  up  there  and  show  me  three  quarters  of  that 
line ;  and  I  very  soon  found  out  that  many  of  the  boys  could  not  do 
it.  They  could  go  through  with  this  analysis,  and  tell  all  about  it  in 
language;  they  could  tell  which  was  the  denominator,  and  which  was 
the  numerator,  but  when  they  came  to  showing  the  thing  itself,  they 
could  not  do  it.  For  my  own  part,  I  had  rather  have  the  explanation 
that  Mr.  Booth  has  given  there  than  a  page  and  a  half  of  the  best 
language  a  deaf  mute  ever  wrote. 

Mr.  Argo:  I  had  rather  have  both;  and  I  would  have  both  or 
nothing.    [Applause.] 

Mr.  Booth:  We  can  judge  of  the  method  by  its  results  better  than 
in  any  other  way.  I  will  relate  an  instance  in  my  class.  Two  weeks 
ago,  just  after  examination,  we  had  no  lessons,  and  I  went  into  the 
study  in  the  evening  to  give  them  something  to  keep  them  busy,  and 
I  gave  them  two  problems  in  arithmetic  to  be  done  upon  paper.  One 
of  them  did  not  have  any  paper  or  pencil,  but  performed  the  problem 
mentally.  The  problem  was:  "A  man  had  two  hundred  peaches  for 
which  he  paid  $2  50.  He  sold  one  half  of  them  at  the  rate  of  two 
for  five  cents,  and  the  rest  of  them  at  the  rate  of  four  for  five  cents. 
How  much  did  he  get,  and  how  much  did  he  gain?"  In  two  or 
three  minutes  that  girl  had  worked  that  problem  mentally,  and  had 
given  me  the  answers;  and  I  had  to  take  paper  and  pencil  to  work 
out  the  problem  to  see  whether  it  was  right  or  not.  I  found  that  it 
was  right.  I  say  that  by  this  method  of  teaching  arithmetic  that  I 
have  so  far  presented,  they  learn  it  as  mental  arithmetic.  Indeed, 
all  arithmetic  is  mental  arithmetic. 

Mr.  Walker:  How  many  pupils  arrived  at  the  right  solution  with 
the  paper  and  pencil? 

Mr.  Booth:  I  did  not  count,  but  I  think  two  thirds  of  the  class  ot 
sixteen.  I  may  say  that  the  problem  that  I  gave  this  forenoon  was 
worked  by  a  girl  who  had  been  in  school  four  and  a  half  years,  and 


100         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

had  studied  fractions  only  since  the  term  examination — about  two 
months. 

Mr.  Walker:  Are  you  certain  it  was  no  guess  work? 

Mr.  Booth:  I  would  like  to  have  somebody  guess  out  the  two 
answers.  I  know  that  she  understood  it.  I  knew  the  girl,  and  that 
I  did  not  need  to  ask  her  if  she  understood  it.  She  could  take  that 
problem  and  illustrate  it;  and  the  problem  is  quite  involved,  and  the 
girl  is  a  deaf  mute  who  has  been  in  school  six  years. 

Mr.  T.  L.  Moses,  of  Tennessee:  Do  you  mean  that  that  young  lady 
thought  out  two  hundred  peaches,  and  then  separated  them  into 
groups  of  one  hundred,  and  then  separated  those  groups  of  one  hun- 
dred into  the  groups  that  you  named  there,  of  two  each,  and  then 
next  the  one  hundred  into  groups  of  four  each,  and  that  all  of  them 
had  to  work  out  that  problem? 

Mr.  Booth-  I  do  not  pretend  to  say  that  I  can  follow  the  reasoning 
process  that  the  girl  used. 

Mr.  Moses:  Do  you  think  she  pictured  two  hundred  peaches  in 
her  mind  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  No,  sir;  I  think  she  saw  the  relations  just  as  we  do, 
and  performed  the  example  mentally  just  as  we  do,  having  arrived 
at  that  ability  through  this  method  of  instruction. 

Mr.  Moses:  In  your  experience  how  many  objects  can  a  child's 
mind  grasp  and  see  and  understand  at  a  glance,  or  at  one  time  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  I  have  not  made  any  study  of  that. 

A  Member:  Do  you  believe  a  child  can  go  above  ten  ? 

Mr.  Booth:  I  have  no  doubt  of  it,  presented  in  that  way. 

Mr.  Moses:  Fifteen? 

Mr.  Booth:  No,  sir;  but  the  child  sees  seventy,  by  this  method, 
just  the  same  as  it  sees  seven,  or  seven  hundred — seven  of  these 
great  groups,  in  just  this  same  relation  to  each  other. 

Mr.  D.  L.  Elmendorf,  of  New  York:  To  illustrate  in  regard  to 
taking  in  those  groupings  at  a  single  glance,  it  is  a  physiological  fact 
that  nobody,  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  has  been  able  to  take  in 
more  than  seven  irregular  objects  at  a  glance.  But  if  things  are 
arranged  in  order,  they  may  be  taken  in  to  almost  any  extent,  with 
some  practice.  Of  irregular  objects  placed  upon  the  blackboard  I 
doubt  if  there  is  any  one  in  the  audience  who  can  take  in  more  than 
six  at  a  glance. 

Mr.  Williams:  Is  not  that  a  matter  of  practice  ?  Cannot  the  eye 
be  cultivated? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  No,  sir;  unless  you  put  them  in  some  particular 
order.  Take  a  counting  frame;  a  person  looking  at  it,  and  knowing 
that  there  are  ten  on  a  line,  will  take  in  one  hundred  or  five  hundred 
or  a  thousand,  but  I  do  not  think  you  can  take  any  more  than  six 
irregular  objects. 

Mr.  Williams:  I  should  doubt  that,  and,  as  evidence  to  the  con- 
trary, I  once  knew  a  gentleman  who  was  very  anxious  to  cultivate 
observation  in  his  little  child,  and,  in  order  to  do  that,  he  was  accus- 
tomed to  take  him  in  his  arms  and  carry  him  past  a  shop  window, 
without  stopping  at  all, and  making  him  mention  everything  he  had 
seen.  At  first  the  child  would  see  but  a  few  things,  but  by  constant 
practice  he  could  see  and  name  almost  everything  there  was  in  a 
window  that  he  passed  by,  at  a  casual  glance.  i: 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  That  is  an  entirely  different  thing.     While  he 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP  THE   DEAF.  101 

might  be  able  to  tell  the  names,  he  could  not  tell  how  many  there 
were  there. 

Mr.  Williams:  No,  sir;  but  he  could  name  over  a  great  many  dif- 
ferent things. 

Mr.  Elmendorp:  But  he  did  not  take  them  in  at  a  glance;  his  eye 
followed  them. 

Mr.  Williams:  Then  you  think  that  to  grasp  accurately  more  than 
six  things  is  impossible  ? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  That  is  what  the  different  physiologists  have 
stated. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  think  it  would  be  better  for  us  to  have  an  evening 
session  to-morrow  night,  and  if  we  can  come  back  then  and  hear  Mr. 
Booth  upon  the  subject  of  arithmetic,  I  think  it  would  be  for  our 
interest  to  do  so.  I  would  like  to  say,  in  regard  to  Mr.  Booth's  method 
of  instruction,  that  I  know  it  to  be  very  successful.  He  has  pursued 
his  method  by  the  side  of  the  usual  method  of  teaching  arithmetic, 
for  the  last  two  or  three  years,  and  I  need  not  say  with  the  very 
greatest  success.  [Applause.]  It  is  simply  teaching  arithmetic 
through  the  sight,  just  as  you  teach  language,  and  the  pupils  under- 
stand what  they  are  about. 

The  motion  was  made,  seconded,  and  carried  unanimously,  that 
there  be  an  evening  session  to-morrow  for  the  consideration  of  this 
subject,  at  half-past  seven. 

Here  the  department  adjourned. 

THE   EXCURSION. 

The  excursion  of  the  National  Convention  of  Teachers  of  Deaf 
Mutes,  in  session  at  Berkeley,  last  Saturday,  was  a  success  in  every 
particular,  and  the  visitors  were  delighted  with  all  they  saw  during 
the  day.  The  members  of  the  convention  boarded  a  special  train  at 
Dwight  Way  at  nine  a.  m.,  and  were  taken  to  the  mole,  where  they 
embarked  on  the  ferry  steamer  El  Capitan  and  steamed  out  into  the 
Bay  towards  San  Francisco.  Skirting  the  city  front  of  that  city,  they 
had  a  splendid  opportunity  of  viewing  the  ever  varying  aspect  of  the 
city  from  Market  Street  to  Black  Point,  where  they  ran  into  the  first 
misty  veil  of  fog  that  was  floating  through  the  Golden  Gate.  Circling 
Alcatraz,  the  steamer  ran  under  the  long  silent,  half-dismantled  para- 
pets of  Fort  Point.  Here  the  fog  was  so  thick  that  it  was  deemed 
unadvisable  to  make  a  further  excursion  in  the  direction  of  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  The  northern  shore  was  then  skirted  from  Saucelito  to  San 
Rafael,  around  Red  Rock  to  Hunter's  Point.  It  was  now  half-past 
one  o'clock,  and  at  the  suggestion  of  Mr.  Wilkinson,  the  steamer  ran 
into  the  slip  and  the  party  went  ashore,  breaking  up  into  parties  and 
visiting  Chinatown,  the  Chinese  theater,  Palace  Hotel,  Nob  Hill,  the 
jewelry  stores,  and  other  points  of  interest,  making  small  purchases 
and  otherwise  enjoying  their  "run  ashore."  At  the  proper  time  all 
of  the  party  were  on  board  and  the  steamer  returned  to  Oakland.  A 
band  of  music  accompanied  the  excursion,  and  dancing  was  indulged 
in.  A  substantial  lunch  was  served  during  the  day  which  was 
thoroughly  appreciated  by  all  who  partook. 


102  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

NORMAL  SCHOOL  DEPARTMENT,  JULY  17,  1886. 
Evening  Session. 

Mr.  Ely,  of  Maryland,  the  Chairman,  called  the  convention  to  order. 

Mr.  Booth:  We  will  take  up,  this  evening,  the  subjects  of  multi- 
plication and  division,  and,  if  we  have  time,  fractions,  and  hurry 
through  them  rapidly.  But  I  would  like  to  say  that  what  I  talk  in 
five  minutes,  it  takes  perhaps  five  months  to  teach;  so  that  you  will 
understand  that  we  do  not  rush  along  so  fast  as  I  am  compelled  to 
here.  Coming  to  multiplication,  we  teach  it  first  as  addition,  as,  of 
course,  multiplication  is. 

Multiplication  should  be  taught  as  addition — as  repeated  additions 
of  the  same  number:  three  times  four  may  be  the  first  combination 
taught,  and  it  would  be  well  to  teach  but  the  one  combination  in  one 
day,  reviewing  it  the  next  day  and  on  succeeding  days.  It  will  be 
presented  first  in  the  usual  way: 


oo     oo     o 
oo     oo     o 


and  the  addition  will  be  represented  by  the  operation  with  figures: 

4 
4 

± 

12 

The  significance  of  each  figure  will  be  pointed  out.     It  may  then 
be  shown  that  the  operation, 

4 
_3  times 
12 

may  represent  the  same  process.  This  will  have  to  be  shown  a  great 
many  times  before  the  identity  of  the  processes  will  be  established 
and  the  significance  of  the  figures  understood.  It  will  be  well  to 
require  pupils  to  illustrate  all  problems  in  multiplication,  and  to 
work  them  by  both  the  addition  process  and  the  multiplication  pro- 
cess. The  latter  will  in  time  be  seen  to  be  the  shorter,  and  will  be 
adopted.  The  multiplication  tables  should  be  learned  by  the  pupils, 
but  they  should  be  required  to  determine  the  proper  combinations 
themselves,  and  this  by  successive  rediscoveries  rather  than  by  mem- 
orizing the  results  of  first  discoveries.  The  aim  will  be  to  teach  the 
pupils  to  see  in  the  figures  of  a  combination  the  conditions  of  the 
process  that  determined  it;  otherwise  they  will  learn  the  combina- 
tion as  a  purely  arbitrary  aggregation  of  figures.  In  teaching  multi- 
plication of  tens  and  multiplication  by  tens,  it  is  important  that  the 
operations  be  illustrated.  This  may  be  best  done  by  using  marks  in 
groups  of  tens.    Twelve  multiplied  by  twelve  is  illustrated: 


i  1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 
liniiiiii 
niiiiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 


liniiiiii 
liniiiiii 


i  l 
1 1 
1 1 
1 1 
1 1 
u 
l  i 

I  l 

I I 
l  l 


i  l 
l  i 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF. 


103 


All  see  at  a  glance  that  the  product  is  one  hundred  and  forty-four. 
The  partial  products,  and  their  sum,  will  be  shown  in  figures: 


12 

12  times 

4 

20 

20 

100 

144 


In  time,  this  may  be  shortened  to: 

12 

12  times 

24 
12 

144 

And  it  will  even  be  shortened  to  the  combination  of  the  multiplica- 
tion table: 

12x12=144 

The  pupil  may  learn  to  multiply  mentally,  thirteen  by  thirteen, 
thirteen  by  fourteen,  fourteen  by  fourteen,  fifteen  by  fourteen,  ana 
others  of  the  simpler  combinations,  by  seeing  a  mental  picture  of 
the  hundreds  and  ten  products,  and  combining  them.  This  method 
of  illustration  may  be  used  in  the  multiplication  of  larger  numbers: 


null 
111111 
nun 
liiiii 
111111 
linn 
111111 
liiiii 
liiiii 
liiiii 


liiiii 
111111 
liiiii 


liiiiin 
liiiini 
liiiiui 
miiiii 
liiiini 
liiiini 
liiiini 
liumi 
liiinii 
liiiini 


i-iiiiiii 

miiiii 
limiii 


liinii 
liiiin 
limn 
limn 
liiiin 
liiim 
liiiin 
liiiin 
liiiin 
liiiin 


uimi 
liiiin 
liiim 


The  product,  as  may  be  seen,  is  three  hundred  and  fifty  and  ninety 
and  fifteen;  or,  expressing  it  concisely,  four  hundred  and  fifty-five. 
Representing  the  process  in  figures,  we  have: 

35 
13  times 

15 

90 

50 
300 
455 

In  this  the  significance  of  every  figure  is  obvious.  As  the  numbers 
grow  larger,  and  the  difficulties  of  illustration  increase,  the  necessity 
for  it  will  cease  to  exist.  The  significance  of  place  will  be  well  under- 
stood, and  principles  will  have  become  well  established,  and  the  pupil 
will  have  acquired  ability  to  reason  and  to  generalize  up  to  a  mastery 
of  the  more  complex  processes.  There  are  two  kinds  of  division: 
one  in  which  the  divisor  and  dividend  are  numbers  of  the  same 
denomination;  the  other  in  which  the  divisor  indicates  the  number 
of  parts  to  be  made  of  the  dividend.  The  former  is  subtraction  (sub- 
traction-times), and  should  be  taught  first.  The  latter  is  factoring, 
and  should  not  be  taught  until  the  former  is  thoroughly  mastered. 


104 


PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 


Care  should  be  taken  that  the  purpose  of  division  is  clearly  under- 
stood. It  should  determine  something  that  all  want  determined,  and 
that  all  see  may  be  determined.  As  in  all  processes,  the  unknown 
quantity  will  be  the  missing  keystone  to  the  arch;  it  will  be  seen  in 
its  relations  to  the  known  quantities;  will  be  sought  for  intelligently; 
and  when  found  will  be  recognized  as  the  thing  sought. 

Problems  presented  should  first  be  solved  without  the  use  of  figures: 


N\ 


? 

• 

v'oJ;  fo)  ■  'o*v  'o  v 
0/(0/(0/(0/ 

(C 

The  problem  thus  presented  would  read:   At  two  cents  each  how 
many  peaches  may  be  bought  for  eight  cents? 

The  purpose  of  the  problem  being  clearly  understood,  a  mechan- 
ical operation  with  figures  may  be  taught  as  representing  the  opera- 
tion performed : 

2)8(4  times. 

Care  will  be  taken  that  the  relation  that  two  (2)  bears  to  eight  (8), 
and  the  relation  that  both  bear  to  the  quotient,  are  clearly  perceived; 
otherwise  the  three  figures  will  be  thought  to  represent  three  inde- 
pendent quantities. 

The  division  of  tens  and  hundreds  will  be  taught  by  illustration: 


?  9 
o  o 

J)  A> 


It  is  clearly  obvious  that  three  is  in  thirty  ten  times.    It  is  something 
that  cannot  be  explained.     It  must  be  perceived  as  a  fact.     In  the 
same  way  it  will  be  seen  that  four  is  in  forty  ten  times;  five  in  fifty 
ten  times,  etc. 
The  division  of  sixty  by  three  will  be  illustrated: 


CD   CD 
0   C) 


CD  CD 
(P 


C) 
CD 


CD  CD 

O  C) 

CD  CD 

CD  CD 

C)  C) 

CD  CD 


CD  CD 

O  O 

CD  CD  CD 

CD  CD  CD 

C)  O  O 

CD  CD  CD 


CD  CD 

CP  C) 

CD 

<D 

O 
CD 


The  quotient  is  obviously  twenty. 
Dividing  three  hundred  by  three,  it  will  be  illustrated: 

'  rmmm  mm////  //////////  //////////  >////////,  /////////  //////////  //////////  ////////// 

'    I/// 1/1/1/   //////////  //////////   /////////   ////////,    /;////////    //////////   //////////////////// 

r  uMuu  km/////  //////////  //////////  /////////  //////////  //////////  //////////  ////////// 

Before  the  process  has  progressed  far,  the  result  will  be  anticipated. 
It  will  be  seen  that  the  quotient  must  inevitably  be  one  hundred. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  105 

The  division  of  three  hundred  by  fifteen  will  be  illustrated: 


s  s  s  s  s  s  s  s  s 

s  y  s  s  s  s s  S 

s  s  s  s  s  y 
s  s  s 
s  s  y  / 

/   /  S   / 

s  s  s  S  S  s  S 


The  quotient  is  in  this  case  twenty. 

By  this  method  of  illustration  the  pupil  sees  the  relations  that  exist 
between  quantities  as  necessary  relations,  and  in  the  solution  of 
problems  he  will  learn  to  see  their  conditions  as  consistent  with  them. 

The  various  forms  of  problems  will  be  taught  as  language  lessons. 
A  new  form  will  be  presented  with  real  conditions,  using  things  in 
the  new,  but  perfectly  natural,  numerical  relation.  The  inevitable 
unknown  quantity  will  be  seen  to  exist  in  its  relation  to  the  known 
quantities.  It  will  then  be  required  that  what  has  been  seen  shall  be 
expressed  in  language,  a  question  being  written  finally,  asking  for  the 
unknown  quantity. 

There  is  no  language  so  exacting  as  numerical  language,  and  it 
may  be  said  there  are  no  ideas  that  are  so  clearly  defined  and  at  the 
same  time  so  intimately  related  as  are  ideas  of  numbers  and  their 
processes.  The  effort  should  be  made  to  bring  into  perfect  accord  the 
ideas  in  the  mind  of  the  pupil  and  the  language  used  for  their  expres- 
sion. 

All  problems  presented  for  solution,  so  far  as  it  may  be  expedient, 
should  be  illustrated  by  the  pupil,  showing  that  he  understands  the 
conditions  involved,  as  also  that  he  perceives  the  numerical  relations 
existing  among  the  quantities.  This  is,  practically,  mental  arithme- 
tic, as  a  problem  may  be  solved  without  the  use  of  figures.  Some 
test  is  necessary  other  than  a  correct  operation  in  figures.  The  illus- 
tration of  the  problem  is  a  severe  test;  it  shows  in  the  concrete  exactly 
what  the  figures  represent  and  what  the  conditions  express,  and  at 
the  same  time  it  makes  significant  every  step  of  the  operation  in 
figures  as  representing  a  clearly  understood  process  with  numbers. 
As  was  said  in  the  beginning,  the  method  teaches  numbers — the  sci- 
ence of  numbers  and  the  art  of  computing  them— by  the  use  of  num- 
bers. The  pupil  learns  to  use  figures  and  operations  with  figures 
merely  to  represent  what  he  already  knows  as  numbers  and  their 
processes.  He  never  uses  figures  unless  he  knows  their  meaning  and 
their  purpose;  he  uses  them  because  they  are  useful,  always  as  a 
means  to  a  clearly  perceived  end. 

Understanding  the  relations  of  numbers  in  their  various  processes, 
he  is  never  guilty  of  the  absurdity  of  "subtracting"  the  figure  2  from 


106  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

the  figure  1  and  getting  the  figure  9  for  a  "  remainder,"  nor  does  he, 
put  to  the  test,  maintain  that  109  and  901  are  equivalent.  Numbers 
exist  for-  him  as  real  things  to  be  dealt  with,  and  figures  represent 
them.  The  problem  becomes  the  familiar  story,  the  conditions  of 
which  are  verified  by  experience  or  are  seen  to  exist  consistent  with 
possibility. 

I  am,  in  all  this,  developing  the  problem.  I  use,  throughout  the 
course,  this  system  of  developing  the  probiein  by  presenting  real  con- 
ditions first/and  the  pupil  gets  acquainted  with  the  processes  with 
numbers,  so  that  it  becomes,  as  it  were,  a  life  experience  to  him. 
Teachers  are  all  complaining  of  the  great  difficulty  pupils  have  in 
understanding  the  language  of  problems.  If  they  know  these  pro- 
cesses with  numbers,  the  language  is  easy,  because  the  language  sim- 
ply fits  these  processes  with  numbers,  these  conditions  that  they  are 
familiar  with,  that  are  experiences  to  them.  I  say  that  they  under- 
stand the  problem  written  just  as  they  understand,  a  cat  and  mouse 
story;  simply  because  the  language  expresses  something  that  they  can 
picture  as  an  experience,  or  as  a  combination  that  they  make.  The 
language  expresses  something  that  is  a  part  of  their  life;  that  they 
can  verify  by  their  experience.  The  trouble  is,  not  that  the  language 
itself  is  difficult,  but  it  is  the  numbers,  or  the  figures,  that  are  diffi- 
cult. They  do  not  know  what  the  figures  really  represent,  and  they  do 
not  know  the  relations  in  which  the  quantities,  with  the  figures  repre- 
senting them,  stand  to  one  another.  I  say  that  they  must  understand 
the  relation  in  which  the  quantities  stand  to  one  another,  just  as  they 
understand  the  relation  in  which  the  hunter  and  his  gun  the  squirrel 
and  the  tree  stand  to  one  another,  as  an  experience,  in  order  that  they 
may  verify  the  idea  that  the  language  is  intended  to  convey.  And 
if  they  have  had  this  experience  they  can  do  so  intelligently.  And 
so  I  say,  .when  you  give  these  illustrations  over  and  over  again,  all 
manner  of  them,  they  have  no  difficulty  in  reading  and  understand- 
ing the  problem,  no  matter  how  involved  the  language  may  be.  I 
gave  you  a  problem  last  evening  in  which  the  language  was  involved, 
and  which  did  not  contain  any  words  that  I  saw  would  suggest  the 
operations  to  be  performed. 

How  many  times  have  we  asked  the  pupil  why  he  subtracted? 
How  many  times  have  they  pointed  to  the  word  "  left  ?  "  They  think 
that  wherever  they  see  the  word  "left"  in  the  problem  it  requires 
subtraction.  And  where  they  see  the  word  "at"  they  multiply.  And 
they  have  catch  words  as  we  know.  Where  they  see  the  word  "each" 
in  a  question  they  divide.  They  are  the  key  words  to  the  operation 
to  be  performed,  and  the  deaf  mutes  are  very  quick  to  catch  at  these 
key  words  to  determine  the  operation  to  be  performed. 

Mr.  D.  C.  Dudley:  Do  you  find  any  difficulty  in  illustrating  pro- 
miscuous problems  combining  the  four  rules? 

Mr.  Booth:  None  whatever.  Of  course,  a  difficult  problem  is  dif- 
ficult, but  in  the  sense  you  mean,  I  do  not. 

Mr.  Dudley:  I  have  often  found  pupils  who  understood  the  four 
rules  perfectly,  when  separated,  but  when  all  combined  in  one  prob- 
lem, they  are  at  sea. 

Mr.  Booth:  I  should  not  teach  in  that  way.  I  should  teach  both 
processes  together.  I  should  give  them  problems  promiscuously,  as 
you  say,  giving  them  problems  in  addition  and  subtraction — one  or 
two  in  each— without  any  hint  as  to  the  operation  to  be  performed. 
But  when  I  give  them  problems  throughout  the  course— in  fact,  when 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  107 

I  desire  to  draw  out  a  new  process  with  quantities  and  numbers— I 
require  them  to  illustrate.  If  the  problem  is  five  times  one  sheep,  I 
illustrate  it  in  this  way: 

o  0  0 

o  o 


That  makes  it  realistic  to  the  pupil.  He  can  see  there  the  real 
sheep,  and  he  will  have  less  difficulty  in  understanding  it  than  if  you 
put  it  "five  dollars."  I  teach  these  different  processes,  or  operations, 
entirely  separate. 

Mr.  M.  T.  Gass:  Would  you  teach,  in  connection  with  multiplica- 
tion, division  also? 

Mr.  Booth:  No,  sir;  I  should  teach  addition  and  subtraction 
together;  that  is,  about  the  same  time. 

Mr.  Gass:  Would  it  not  be  easy  to  teach  that  four  times  four  are 
sixteen,  and  four  in  forty  makes  ten? 

Mr.  Booth:  I  would  have  no  objection  to  that,  but  I  do  not  like  to 
present  too  many  difficulties. 

Mr.  Gass:  Don't  you  think  that  combining  the  two  would  often- 
times facilitate  the  teaching  of  these  operations? 

Mr.  Booth:  Perhaps  so.  But  I  would  teach  addition  and  subtrac- 
tion first,  and  get  my  pupils  thoroughly  grounded  in  those  two  pro- 
cesses, because  multiplication  is  nothing  more  than  complicated 
addition.     I  must  teach  addition  first. 

Mr.  Gass:  But  division  and  multiplication  are  very  closely  related. 
One  is  simply  a  reversal  of  the  other. 

Mr.  Booth:  I  do  not  teach  it  so.  I  teach  that  division  is  "sub- 
traction times,"  subtracting  as  many  times  as  you  can  until  the  quan- 
tity is  exhausted. 

And  then  there  is  another  kind  of  subtraction  that  is  altogether 
different  from  that.  In  the  case  of  300  divided  by  3,  it  is  very  clear 
that  it  is  "subtraction  times." 

Coming  to  fractions,  here  is  the  teacher's  opportunity.  If  he  has 
never  taught  numbers  before,  and  has  taught  nothing  but  figures,  or 
if  the  teacher  who  preceded  him  has  taught  nothing  but  figures,  here 
is  his  opportunity.  You  can  go  back  and  teach  simple  numbers. 
After  the  class  has  learned  operations  with  figures  in  the  four  rules, 
it  is  almost  impossible  to  teach  numbers  to  them.  But  when  we 
come  to  fractions,  this  is  our  opportunity.  We  cannot  only  teach 
fractions,  but  we  can  teach  simple  numbers.  What  do  we  do  ?  When 
I  write  the  problem,  the  conditions  of  which  will  require  the  use  of 
this  part  of  a  unit  Tone  half,]  whether  it  is  apples  or  anything  else,  I 
will  show  to  the  class  this  half  of  a  paper  disc.  [Showing.]  I  take 
the  circle  as  my  unit,  because  the  arc  of  a  circle  suggests  the  unit.  I 
take  this  in  preference  to  a  straight  line,  simply  because  there  is  no 
way  of  determining  whether  the  straight  line  is  a  whole  line  or  a  half 
line.  A  straight  line  does  not  suggest  a  unit.  I  have  used  straight 
lines,  but  now  I  use  circles,  in  which  the  unity  is  obvious  to  a  deaf 
child.  When  a  straight  line  is  represented  to  him,  he  does  not  know 
anything  about  a  whole  unit,  but  when  he  is  shown  half  a  disc  he 
does,  upon  its  first  presentation.  You  cannot  explain  it,  but  he  must 
see  it  as  just  what  it  is.    Then  I  tell  him,  without  explaining  why, 


108         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

that  this  character  2  represents  this  shape  O-  Of  course  it  is  rela- 
tion; but  to  the  deaf  child  it  must  be  taught  as  representing  shape. 

Then  I  will  take  this  shape  Q^  and  teach  them,  at  the  same 
time,  that  the  sign  4  is  intended  to  represent  it.  And  whenever  I  do 
anything  that  calls  for  that  shape  I  shall  require  him  to  write  that 
sign,  4.  Then  it  is  practice,  and  difficult  practice,  to  drill  the  judg- 
ment. In  this  way  they  learn  that  the  figure  2  under  a  line  indicates 
a  half,  and  the  figure  4  under  a  line  indicates  a  fourth.  And  all  of 
the  class  have  learned  that  in  a  few  minutes. 

They  having  arrived  at  the  ability  to  make  a  distinction  between 
quarters  and  halves,  I  will  ask  them  to  represent  two  fourths,  and 
they  see  that  it  is  necessary  for  them  to  take  up  two  pieces  of  this 

shape,  |\  and  then  I  change  the  fraction  to  three  fourths,  and 
ask  them  if  they  know  what  that  means,  and  many  of  them  will  pick 
up  three  of  these  pieces.  In  this  way  they  have  learned  that  the  fig- 
ure 4  under  the  line  signifies  that  peculiar  shape,  and  that  the  figure 
3  indicates  how  many — the  denominator  and  the  numerator. 

Having  gone  so  far,  we  then  teach  addition,  subtraction,  and  multi- 
plication of  fractions.  The  process  of  addition  is  the  same  in  frac- 
tions as  it  is  in  simple  numbers.  I  give  two  of  these  papers  each 
representing  a  fourth  of  a  disc,  to  one  pupil,  and  three  to  another, 
tell  them  to  put  it  down  on  their  slates,  and  they  will  put  it  down, 
f  and  f.  I  will  ask  them  how  many  there  are,  and  they,  seeing  it  is 
addition,  will  put  down  f .  They  never  think  of  adding  the  denomi- 
nators, though  I  have  never  taught  them  not  to.  They  have  simply 
added  the  numerators.  The  numerators  are  significant  of  just  what 
is  added;  the  denominators  signify  just  the  size,  and  the  size  remains 
the  same.    Subtraction  is  taught  in  the  same  way. 

A  Member:  Do  you  ever  write  the  word  "  denominator?" 

Mr.  Booth:  Yes,  sir;  sometimes. 

Mr.  Booth:  The  following  question  is  asked  me,  taken  from  the 
question  box:  "How  long  can  the  teaching  of  arithmetic  be  safely 
deferred?"  It  can  be  safely  deferred  quite  a  long  time;  that  is,  the 
time  of  the  teacher  can  be  given  to  the  teaching  of  language  a  year, 
perhaps,  before  arithmetic  as  a  subject  of  instruction  is  formally 
introduced.  Of  course  the  names  of  numbers,  as  adjectives,  could  be 
used  in  association  with  things,  as  it  would  be  necessary  in  language, 
but  I  think  it  would  be  better  to  spend  all  of  the  time  of  the  class 
upon  language,  rather  than  half  the  time  on  arithmetic  and  half  the 
time  on  language.  At  the  beginning  of  the  second  year  I  teach  addi- 
tion and  subtraction,  and  the  third  year  I  teach  multiplication  and 
division. 

Mr.  Goodwin:  In  illustrating  fractions  would  it  not  be  well  to 
vary  the  illustration,  sometimes  showing  a  ball,  or  an  apple,  as  the 
unit,  and  dividing  it  into  halves,  quarters,  sixths,  and  so  forth? 

Mr.  Booth:  Yes,  sir. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  subject  to  be  considered  is  geography. 
The  section  will  be  led  by  Mr.  Weston  Jenkins,  Principal  of  the  New 
Jersey  institution. 

Mr.  Jenkins:  Mr.  Chairman,  Ladies,  and  Gentleman:  In  estimat- 
ing the  value  of  school-room  work,  we  need  to  distinguish  between 
instruction  and  education.  We  need  to  reckon  how  much  of  the 
value  of  what  we  teach  is  in  the  intrinsic  value  of  the  facts  imparted, 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  109 

and  bow  much  in  the  training,  which  the  study  gives  to  the  pupil's 
mind,  which  will  enable  him  to  appreciate  and  classify  facts,  and 
deduce  his  own  rules  from  the  underlying  principles. 

It  does  not  need  to  be  said  to  this  audience  that  the  latter  is  the 
highest  kind  of  value.  But  there  are  some  studies  in  which  the 
intrinsic  value  of  the  facts  is  so  great,  the  practical  use  which  can  be 
made  of  them  is  so  important,  that  we  may  disregard  the  mental 
training,  I  think,  which  the  acquisition  of  those  facts  implies.  For 
example,  arithmetic.  While  Mr.  Booth  has  very  clearly  shown,  and 
while  the  experience  of  myself,  and,  I  presume,  of  all  other  teachers 
of  the  deaf,  confirms  what  he  has  shown,  namely,  that  the  congenital 
deaf,  or  those  deaf  from  early  childhood,  can  be  taught  arithmetic 
successfully  by  a  mere  system  of  nemonics,  yet  it  is  taught,  I  think, 
to  hearing  children,  very  largely,  in  a  way  that  involves  almost 
nothing  in  the  way  of  pure  education  and  mental  training. 

I  think  that  the  majority  of  hearing  children  who  attend  public 
schools  and  use  the  text-books  prescribed,  get  a  competent  knowl- 
edge of  the  operations  of  arithmetic  in  every  day  life,  without  any 
clear  comprehension  of  the  principles  involved.  And  if  we  could 
teach  our  deaf  children  more  readily  in  that  way — if  we  could  give 
that  practical  knowledge  of  arithmetic  in  a  way  more  expeditious 
than  by  an  educational  system  like  that  of  Professor  Booth,  I  think 
we  should  be  justified  in  doing  so.  And  if  I  could,  in  the  course  of 
two  years,  teach  my  children  by  any  of  the  systems  in  use  in  our 
public  schools,  to  solve  the  practical  arithmetical  questions  that 
would  come  before  them,  I  should  feel  justified  in  doing  so,  and 
should  prefer  that  method  to  Mr.  Booth's.  Not  knowing  such  a 
method,  I  should  be  very  glad  to  adopt  the  educational  method. 

Geography  is,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  taught  in  most  of  the  schools  on 
the  instructional  rather  than  the  educational  principle.  I  think  that 
a  perusal  of  the  most  popular,  text-books  will  show  this,  and  very 
obviously,  taking  the  conditions  that  surround  the  children,  that  pro- 
cess may  be  justified.  People  want  to  know  geography  very  largely 
as  a  matter  of  convenience— as  something  that  is  conventionally 
expected  of  them— just  as  we  learn  to  spell.  Really,  what  is  the  use 
of  mastering  all  the  intricacies  of  English  or  of  geography  ?  It  is  a 
conventional  accomplishment.  A  person  who  cannot  spell  according 
to  the  standards,  loses  a  certain  esteem— he  does  not  hold  position  as 
an  educated  person.  And  so  people  learn  geography.  They  learn  the 
statistical  part  of  geography,  because  it  is  rather  a  disgrace  not  to 
know  it.  When  allusion  is  made  to  Singapore,  or  Vesuvius,  or  Sara- 
gossa,  or  the  Rhine,  we  want  to  have  some  idea  of  what  is  being  talked 
about,  just  as  people  read  popular  books  that  come  out,  such  as  Dar- 
win's Origin  of  Species,  or  one  of  George  Eliot's  novels,  who  have  no 
real  interest  in  those  subjects,  but  read  them  merely  as  conventional 
acquirements.  And  so  it  is  very  largely  with  geography,  as  studied 
in  our  hearing  schools;  and,  perhaps,  it  is  worth  studying  in  our  com- 
mon schools  in  that  way,  and  for  that  reason.  But  I  think  that  in 
schools  for  the  deaf,  if  studied  in  that  way,  the  game  is  not  worth  the 
candle.  The  limits  of  the  attainable  are  too  closely  drawn  to  justify 
us  in  spending  so  much  time  in  going  through  so  much,  or,  as  Sam 
Weller's  sharp  boy  says  of  the  alphabet:  "  in  going  through  so  much 
to  get  at  so  little."  It  can  be  taught,  I  think,  so  as  to  have  an  educa- 
tional value.  The  Scotch  speak  of  Latin  and  Greek  as  the  ^human- 
ities," and  geographv,  if  properly  taught,  is,  for  the  deaf,  a  'human- 


110  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

ity."  It  can  be  taught  so  as  to  make  real  to  him  objects  that  he  can- 
not see — places  that  he  can  never  visit — and  it  may  make  his  interest 
in  the  world  of  matter  and  of  mind  more  vivid,  his  conception  of  it 
more  real,  and  so  promote  his  happiness  and  welfare.  That,  I  think, 
should  be  the  object  in  teaching  geography. 

As  to  the  methods  to  be  pursued,  and  as  to  the  extent  to  which  it 
is  to  be  carried,  I  will  state  my  views  very  briefly,  and  shall  ask 
assistance  and  explanation  of  methods  from  the  teachers  who  are 
interested  in  this  subject,  and  who  are  having  practical  class-room 
experience  in  it.  One  great  objection  to  the  usual  methods  of  teach- 
ing geography  is,  even  with  a  hearing  child,  the  taking  of  text-books 
and  beginning,  as  they  do,  with  a  string  of  definitions,  the  child  get- 
ting no  clear  conception  of  what  the  definitions  mean,  or  really  what 
the  words  are.  I  remember  my  conception  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 
I  conceived  a  wall  of  earth  studded  with  bowlders,  such  as  I  had  seen 
in  my  native  hills,  the  size  of  a  small  shanty,  inclined  at  an  angle  of 
forty-five  degrees  with  the  horizon,  rising  two  or  three  miles  in  height 
from  a  level  plain,  with  a  breadth  at  the  base  represented  by  a  pyr- 
amid, and  extending  in  an  unbroken  line  from  Alaska's  shore  through 
the  continent,  until  they  began  to  be  called  the  Andes,  or  something 
else. 

We  should  begin  by  making  these  terms  real  to  the  child,  and 
should  begin  with  one's  own  immediate  neighborhood.  I  think  the 
most  of  our  schools  are  in,  or  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of,  a  city.  I 
would  have  my  child's  experience  with  maps  begin  with  a  map  cut 
from  the  city  directory.  If  he  is  shown,  for  instance,  the  institution 
grounds  as  marked  upon  the  map,  he  will  recognize  it  and  other 
objects  in  the  vicinity,  and  with  a  forty -foot  tape  measure,  or  a  ten- 
foot  pole,  or  something  of  the  kind,  he  will  get  the  idea  of  dimension, 
and  the  idea  of  direction,  and  the  points  of  the  compass,  and  estimate 
the  distance  from  there  to  the  State  House  or  the  City  Hall.  In  that 
way  he  gets  the  elements  of  geography;  he  gets  what  we  try  to  teach 
by  definitions  in  the  book  from  objects  implanted  in  his  mind.  I  will 
not  give  my  ideas  at  large,  as  I  find  from  conversation  with  a  number 
of  ladies  and  gentlemen  here  that  they  have  honored  recent  articles 
of  mine  in  the  "Annals"  by  careful  reading  and  understand  my  posi- 
tion, and  can  criticise  it  very  intelligently;  and  besides,  I  desire  to 
hear  from  others. 

I  merely  indicate  the  error  in  the  usual  way  of  teaching  geography, 
something  that  is  not  adapted  to  our  children,  and  recommend  the 
entire  isolation  of  a  certain  class  of  facts  which  are  put  together  in 
geographies  from  all  other  facts  in  the  universe.  Of  course  it  is  con- 
venient for  us  to  classify  certain  facts  together  as  a  sentence.  But 
students  are  apt  to  get  an  idea  that  what  is  contained  in  a  book  is  all 
there  is  about  a  certain  subject.  They  do  not  get  the  idea  that  there 
are  other  facts  related  to  them.    They  do  not  get  the  idea  of  the  poet: 

"  Flower  in  the  crannied  wall, 
I  \Auck  you  out  of  the  crannies,— 
Hold  you  here,  root  and  all,  in  my  hand, 
Little  flower — hut  if  I  could  understand 
What  you  are,  root  and  all,  and  all  in  all, 
I  should  know  what  God  and  man  is.'' 

I  think  that  our  children  are  tied  to  statistical  description,  of  geog- 
raphy, as  it  is  called,  and  then,  if  they  have  gone  through  the  book 
satisfactorily,  they  are  taught  physical  geography,  and  then,  in  a  more 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  Ill 

advanced  stage  of  their  education,  they  are  taught  botany,  mineralogy, 
and  so  forth. 

But  it  seems  to  me  that  in  teaching  our  children  about  any  locality, 
it  is  better  to  teach  them  all  of  the  facts  they  are  likely  to  remember, 
together,  in  a  group,  with  present  points  of  attachment  for  the  grasp- 
ing of  new  facts.  There  are  many  facts  which  are  usually  reserved 
for  the  higher  text-books,  which  can  be  just  as  well  taught  to  children 
in  the  intermediate  grades,  as  they  can  to  older  people.  For  example, 
winds,  currents,  rainfall,  and  all  that  is  usually  classed  as  physical 
geography.  The  primary  and  intermediate  grades  are  not  supposed 
to  know  anything  about  it,  and  yet  it  is  just  as  easy  to  remember  as 
the  soil  and  productions  which  are  given  in  the  primary  geographies; 
and  they  furnish  points  of  attachments  for  new  facts.  The  pupil  is 
more  apt  to  remember,  and  more  apt  to  join  on  something  new  that 
he  may  learn  to  a  statement  of  those  conditions,  than  he  is  to  a  dry 
enumeration  of  the  products,  soil,  and  climate. 

Now,  as  to  the  means  and  methods  that  can  be  used  in  teaching  in 
this  way.  I  have  found  it  convenient  myself  in  teaching  a  class  of 
mine  to  string  all  of  these  things  together  on  the  thread  of  the  com- 
mercial relations  of  one  country  to  another.  I  have  found  that  any- 
thing new  that  the  pupils  get  hold  of  or  that  I  get  hold  of.  I  can 
string  on  and  put  in  such  a  light  that  they  add  it  to  those  that  they 
have  already  learned,  and  make  it  their  own. 

As  to  the  methods  of  illustration,  there  are  many  teachers  in  this 
audience  who  are  familiar  with  and  expert  in  teaching  by  the  use  of 
the  sand  table;  and  I  should  like  to  know  what  they  have  done  in 
that  direction. 

Mr.  Spruit:  We  have  a  number  of  tables,  the  bottom  made  water 
tight,  provided  with  a  small  flange  an  inch  or  inch  and  a  half  high 
running  around  the  four  sides;  and  this  with  a  bushel  or  so  of  sand 
is  about  the  whole  apparatus.  If  we  have  a  State  or  continent  to 
represent,  we  model  it  as  it  would  be  modeled  in  clay  for  a  blind 
pupil;  clearing  the  sand  entirely  off  from  the  bottom  where  the  water 
is  to  be.  Of  course  the  sand  is  dampened  so  that  it  will  stay  in  place 
where  put.  Then  it  is  a  very  easy  matter  to  pour  in  a  quart  or  two 
of  water  to  represent  the  seas  and  lakes  and  many  little  channels 
increasing  in  size  from  the  top  down  to  the  bottom  for  the  rivers;  and 
plit  in  a  toy  house  or  two  or  a  dozen  to  represent  a  city;  and  perhaps 
a  few  twigs  to  represent  a  forest.  Of  course  this  requires  a  consider- 
able stretch  of  imagination  on  the  part  of  a  pupil  to  transform  this 
into  a  map  or  model  of  a  State  or  continent.  But  with  the  aid  and 
assistance  of  the  teacher,  he  is  able  to  do  this  in  almost  every  case;  at 
least  it  is  much  easier  for  the  pupil  to  understand  what  we  are  trying 
to  get  at  by  the  physical  contour  of  a  country  when  represented  in 
this  way  than  when  represented  merely  by  the  colors  on  the  map  or 
on  the  wall. 

We  also  use  this  to  a  certain  extent  in  teaching  physical  geography. 
It  is  sometimes  very  difficult  to  make  pupils  understand  how  water 
gushes  out  in  the  form  of  a  spring.  But  if  the  sand  is  piled  up  a  little, 
and  a  slate  put  in  and  more  sand  piled  on  top  of  that,  the  slate  being 
placed  at  an  angle  and  the  sand  sloping  up,  the  slate  representing 
the  impervious  strata  of  rock ;  then  when  the  water  falls  upon  this 
hill  or  mountain  and  runs  out  in  a  stream  below,  he  sees  exactly  how 
a  spring  is  formed.  A  hint  of  this  will  be  sufficient  for  you  to  see 
the  many  uses  to  which  this  sand  table  can  be  put.    You  can  use  it 


112  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

not  only  in  teaching  geography  and  physical  geography,  but  some- 
times for  arithmetic,  and  for  various  other  purposes.  It  is  a  piece  of 
school  apparatus  that  we  have  found  very  convenient. 

Mr.  Jenkins:  I  should  be  very  glad  if  Miss  Harris  would  explain 
somewhat  her  mode  of  teaching  these  branches. 

Miss  R.  R.  Harris,  of  Maryland :  In  teaching  geography  I  do  not 
believe  in  burdening  the  memory  of  the  pupil  with  a  long  list  of 
localities  of  which  they  will  probably  never  hear  after  leaving  the 
school-room.  To  avoid  this,  I  have  taken  a  "Cornell's  Intermediate 
Geography,"  and  selecting  such  matter  as  I  thought  best  for  general 
use,  have  prepared  lesson  papers  for  my  class.  These  lessons  have 
been  printed  and  then  distributed  to  the  pupils,  who  use  them  in 
connection  with  the  maps  given  in  the  geography,  while  preparing 
for  recitation.  When  they  recite  the  outline  maps  are  used,  the 
pupils  pointing  out  each  locality  after  he  has  stated  the  situation. 
They  are  very  expert  at  this  exercise.  In  connection  with  the  geo- 
graphical situation  of  important  lakes,  rivers,  towns,  etc.,  I  also  teach 
the  productions  of  various  countries  and  the  occupations  of  the  inhab- 
itants. In  doing  this  I  endeavor  to  make  the  pupils  understand  that 
these  countries,  in  many  respects,  resemble  that  in  which  we  live; 
that  they  have  an  abundance  of  grain  and  fruit,  as  we  see  them  in 
summer,  or  are  covered  with  the  ice  and  snow  that  the  winter  brings 
to  us.  In  the  same  way  I  try  to  make  them  realize  that  the  towns 
are  much  like  those  in  which  we  have  our  homes,  consisting  of  wide 
streets  and  narrow  streets,  public  buildings,  elegant  residences,  and 
squalid  huts.  To  impress  these  facts  upon  their  minds,  I  bring  in 
specimens  of  the  productions  of  the  country  under  consideration  at 
the  time,  whenever  it  is  possible  to  obtain  them.  The  pupils  are 
allowed  to  examine  and,  if  so  desired,  to  taste  them.  Pictures  of  the 
important  streets  and  buildings  of  a  city  make  that  city  a  real  place 
to  them,  while  the  relation  of  some  striking  historical  event  or  legend 
connected  with  the  place  serves  to  heighten  the  interest.  I  teach  the 
names  of  the  principal  foreign  rulers,  wishing  the  class  to  understand 
that  as  we  have  a  President  and  Governors,  so  in  other  countries 
there  are  Emperors  and  Kings.  In  this  manner  I  endeavor  to  make 
the  study  of  geography,  so  often  considered  dry  and  uninteresting,  a 
live  subject,  full  of  interesting  particulars.  You  would  be  surprised 
to  see  how  much  general  information  these  pupils  have  acquired,  rh 
connection  with  the  situation  of  towns,  and  the  sources  and  general 
courses  of  rivers.  I  have  neglected  to  state  that  I  also  teach  the  prin- 
cipal railroads  of  our  own  country,  stating  their  length  and  the  chief 
towns  through  which  they  pass.  The  pupils  trace  out  the  various 
routes  on  the  maps,  and  become  familiar  with  them  as  the  great  high- 
ways of  travel  and  commerce.  If  a  boy's  father  writes  that  he  is  going 
from  Baltimore  to  Chicago,  he  can  frequently  tell  me  through  what 
important  cities  he  will  pass.  I  have  met  with  great  success  by  the 
use  of  this  method.  * 

Mr.  Elmenoorf,  of  New  York:  I  think  that  is  geography,  and  I 
teach  it  in  a  similar  way,  using  at  the  same  time  the  magic  lantern 
or  stereopticon.  I  begin  by  teaching  the  geography  of  New  York, 
asking  a  pupil  if  I  sent  him  to  Twenty-third  Street,  in  which  direc- 
tion would  he  go.  And  if  they  want  to  go  to  the  Academy  of  Design, 
I  ask  them  if  they  have  any  idea  where  it  is.  I  begin  with  objects 
right  around  me,  things  that  they  have  seen,  so  that  they  get  a  slight 
idea  not  only  of  its  direction  from  the  place  where  they  are  at  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  113 

time,  but  they  get  an  idea  of  the  time  it  will  take  for  them  to  go 
there,  and  what  .they  will  find  when  they  get  there,  and  what  they 
intend  to  do  when  they  get  there.  I  begin  in  that  way,  and  then 
I  go  to,  say,  Philadelphia,  for  instance.  And  I  ask  them  where  is 
Philadelphia.  I  begin  by  teaching  the  simplest  divisions  of  the 
country  first.  I  ask  if  any  of  the  class  have  ever  been  there.  I  very 
rarely  find  one  who  has  been  in  a  city  so  far  from  New  York,  except 
those  who  come  from  other  cities.  Suppose  there  is  one  there,  I  get 
that  child  to  tell  me  all  he  knows  about  Philadelphia;  and  then  I 
bring  my  magic  lantern  to  show  them  pictures  of  the  city,  and  they 
get  an  idea  that  it  is  a  large  city,  and  the  first  thing  they  want  to 
know  is  which  is  the  larger,  Philadelphia  or  New  York;  and  I  tell 
them  and  ask  them  which  they  think  is  the  nicer  of  the  two,  and  get 
them  interested  in  that  city,  and  ask  them  if  they  have  any  friend 
there.  Then  I  show  them  photographs  of  the  principal  buildings. 
Take  the  City  Hall,  for  instance,  and  ask  them  if  they  think  it  is  like 
the  New  York  City  Hall.  And  I  make  them  associate  their  ideas 
with  things  they  have  themselves  at  home;  and  I  not  only  do  that 
with  home  cities,  but  also  bring  in  the  magic  lantern  to  illustrate 
these  pictures  by  a  perfect  photograph  of  what  they  are  going  to  see. 
The  children,  when  they  are  through  these  studies,  will  be  able  to  tell 
you  not  only  where  each  city  is,  but  something  about  the  chief  build- 
ings, and  upon  what  railroads  they  are  and  how  many,  and  how 
much  it  will  cost  to  go  there,  and  how  long  it  will  take  to  go  there. 
That  kind  of  geography  I  believe  in,  for  deaf  mutes  at  least.  I  give 
this  as  simply  an  illustration.  I  do  not  wish  them  to  say  that  Phila- 
delphia is  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Pennsylvania,  but  I  want  them 
to  know  the  location,  so  that  if  they  desire  to  go  there  they  can  do  so 
without  very  much  trouble.  I  begin  with  home  topics,  and  go  abroad 
afterwards. 

A  Member:  I  would  like  to  ask  Professor  Elmendorf  how  often  he 
uses  the  stereopticon  ? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  show  it  to  the  young  scholars  about  every  three 
weeks.  I  only  have  geography  three  times  a  week,  and  I  may  show 
it  to  the  geography  class  once  a  week  for  about  half  an  hour,  and 
show  them  pictures  of  one  city.  All  of  our  rooms  are  so  arranged 
that  we  can  show  it  in  the  daytime.  Our  pictures  are  about  three  or 
four  feet. 

A  Member:  Where  do  you  stand  when  you  explain  this  panorama? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  teach  orally,  and  I  stand  right  against  the  wall, 
where  there  is  some  light  from  the  picture  thrown  upon  me.  In  this 
way  I  show  every  important  city  in  the  United  States  that  I  think  it 
is  necessary  for  them  to  know. 

Mr.  Connor:  One  of  the  great  difficulties  that  I  have  had  is  to  get 
the  pupil  to  understand  that  a  map  is  an  outline  of  a  section  of  coun- 
try. They  are  disposed  to  look  at  it  as  a  piece  of  red,  blue,  and  green 
paper  hung  up  on  the  wall  somewhere.  In  order  to  get  that  idea  out 
of  their  minds,  my  plan  is  to  take  a  map  and  spread  it  on  the  floor, 
and  place  the  points  of  the  compass  upon  it.  I  think  that  is  very 
important,  that  the  child  may  get  correct  ideas  of  these  things,  and 
understand  that  the  map  is  intended  to  represent  something  tangible. 

Miss  Dutch:  I  think  one  good  way  to  accomplish  that  is  to  have 
the  children  occasionally  draw  maps  from  memory;  to  take  their 
slates  and  give  a  rude  outline  of  the  localities  of  the  different  States, 
8d 


114         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

and  their  relation  to  one  another.  You  will  be  surprised  to  see  what 
accurate  ideas  the  pupils  will  sometimes  have  of  the  States,  and  their 
relation  to  each  other.  I  also  ask  questions,  such  as  "  Who  sits  north 
of  you?"  "Who  east?"  "Who  northeast?"  etc.;  and  "Whose  room  is 
north  of  this  one?" 

Mr.  Z.  F.  Westervelt:  I  think  there  are  many  of  us  who  have 
not  magic  lanterns  or  stereopticons,  who  can  make  use  of  pictures  with 
very  great  advantage.  One  of  my  classes  has  been  taught  by  the  aid 
of  "Picturesque  America,"  which  contains  pictures  taken  all  over  the 
continent.  They  have  used  this  book  in  the  school-room  regularly, 
and  it  contains  a  great  many  pictures  of  every  place  and  part  of  the 
country.  There  are  very  few  of  our  institutions  that  do  not  have  in 
their  library,  or  that  the  Principal,  or  that  some  of  the  teachers  do 
not  own  beautiful  pictures  that  are  very  easily  shown  to  the  class.  If 
they  would  use  these — and  there  can  be  no  better  use  for  them,  how- 
ever valuable  the  book — it  would  enable  them  to  teach  geography  very 
easily,  and  rapidly.  It  does  not  require  a  stereopticon,  or  darkened 
room,  or  anything  else  that  would  be  impossible  for  some  of  us  to 
obtain.  We  have  used  this  means  of  teaching  geography,  and  we 
have  also  used  a  large  model  of  soft  clay;  making  a  model  of  a  map, 
putting  in  pegs  to  locate  cities  and  towns.  We  have  found  the  clay 
better  than  sand,  for  a  model.  We  put  pieces  of  looking  glass  in  the 
clay,  to  give  the  levels  of  the  rivers,  to  show  how  the  water  could  run 
down,  as  it  would  run,  when  poured  into  Lake  Erie,  down  over  the 
Falls  of  Niagara,  into  the  Niagara  River,  and  into  Lake  Ontario,  and 
so  on  out;  and  to  show  how  the  water  runs  down  the  Hudson  River, 
seeming  to  flow  in  an  opposite  direction. 

We  have  also  used  a  map  upon  the  floor,  but  the  children  could  not 
be  made  to  understand  location  or  direction  from  any  of  our  other 
appliances  or  pictures  until  we  had  a  large  map  painted  upon  the 
floor  in  the  school-room,  with  wooden  blocks,  with  the  names  of  the 
different  buildings  in  the  city,  which  they  were  obliged  to  locate.  All 
these  appliances,  I  suppose,  are  used  in  other  schools,  and  they  are 
simple,  and  easy  to  use.  But  pictures  are  not  resorted  to,  or  used  as 
much  in  the  schools  as  we  think  they  should  be.  We  would  urge 
those  who  have  valuable  books,  containing  pictures,  to  give  them  to 
this  use. 

Mr.  D.  C.  Dudley:  I  think,  if  we  had  the  means  at  our  disposal, 
we  ought  to  have  such  maps  as  they  have  for  the  blind;  maps,  and 
globes  in  relief. 

I  would  not  begin  teaching  a  class  geography,  until  they  were  able 
to  converse  with  me  very  freely  in  the  sign  language.  We  would  then 
have  before  us  the  globe  in  relief,  showing  the  different  countries, 
giving  a  conception  of  the  world  as  a  whole.  I  would  not  begin  with 
the  school  house  and  school  yard,  but  rather  with  the  world  as  a 
whole.  I  would  talk  with  them  about  the  distance  around  the  world ; 
how  long  it  would  tak;e  us  upon  the  cars,  traveling  twenty-five  miles 
an  hour,  to  ride  around  the  world,  and  all  about  it,  in  that  way. 
Then,  I  would  take  out  a  little  section  of  this  great  world,  and  show 
them  that  it  was  so  much  upon  the  globe,  but  we  would  spread  it  out 
and  make  it  larger,  for  convenience.  And  we  would  have  a  map  of 
the  United  States  in  that  way.  And  I  would  let  the  pupils  travel 
about  from  one  State  to  another,  all  over  the  country. 

Mr.  James  Simpson,  of  Dakota:  I  have  no  magic  lantern,  and  am 
doubtful  if  I  have  pictures;  I  teach  with  a  map  of  the  United  States 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  115 

on  the  wall,  and  use  it  every  few  days.  I  get  newspapers,  and  explain 
to  them  about  the  riots  in  Chicago,  and  ask  them  if  they  know  where 
Chicago  is,  and  to  find  it  on  the  map;  and  I  tell  them  it  is  the  largest 
city  in  Illinois,  and  all  about  it.  The  next  day  the  newspapers  bring 
news  of  the  railroad  strike,  and  I  ask  them  to  find  the  railroad  on  the 
map.  In  this  way  the  pupils  remember  for  a  long  time  what  they  are 
taught.  I  also  take  thirty- nine  girls  to  represent  the  United  States, 
each  girl  representing  a  State,  and  have  them  look  for  the  name;  and  I 
will  explain  to  them  that  Dakota  was  not  a  State,  which  would  reduce 
it  to  thirty-eight.  If  you  give  them  something  interesting,  it  will 
fasten  itself  in  their  minds,  and  they  will  remember  it.  Give  them 
items  of  news  from  the  newspapers  every  day,  and  it  will  be  very 
interesting  and  help  them  in  gaining  a  knowledge  of  geography,  and 
also  language  and  spelling.  I  would  make  use  of  current  events  in 
the  teaching  of  geography.  When  the  children  read  that  something 
has  happened  in  some  part  of  the  country,  I  would  immediately 
inquire,  "  Where  is  that  place?  Find  it  on  the  map,  and  tell  me  all 
you  know  about  that  town." 

Mr.  Jenkins:  I  will  explain  briefly  why  I  begin  as  I  do,  and  as 
Professor  Elmendorf  does,  and  not  as  Mr.  Dudley  would,  in  teaching 
geography.  And  I  can  show  the  correctness  of  my  idea  by  reference 
to  the  parallel  study  of  astronomy.  While  all  boys  who  attend  our 
schools  know  something  about  the  Copernican  theory  of  astronomy,  I 
think  they  know  less  about  the  actual  facts  before  their  eyes  than 
persons  did  many  hundred  years  ago.  You  take  the  Book  of  Job,  and 
you  read  of  the  sweet  influences  of  the  Pleiades.  You  take  Chaucer, 
who  wrote  for  common  people,  and  you  will  find  that  he  assumes  that 
the  plowman  and  the  miller  knew  about  the  constellations,  knew 
about  the  rising  and  setting  of  the  stars,  and  knew  of  the  backward 
motion  of  the  sun  and  stars.  1  do  not  believe  that  the  same  class  of 
people  know  anything  about  that  to-day;  I  do  not  believe  that  one 
person  out  of  fifty  who  knows  that  the  earth  moves  round  the  sun, 
knows  that  the  sun  moves  backwards  among  the  stars.  And  the1  rea- 
son is  that  the  people  have  ceased  looking  at  what  the  stars  tell  them 
and  take  what  the  book  tells  them.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  I  believe  it 
is  easier  to  take  a  boy  whose  mind  is  rooted  and  grounded  in  what 
his  eyes  tell  him  about  the  heavens,  and  make  him  understand  the 
Copernican  theory  of  the  solar  system,  than  to  take  a  boy  who  knows 
all  about  that  theory  but  has  not  used  his  eyes  and  to  make  him 
understand  it  perfectly.  So,  I  think  it  is  easier  to  take  a  boy  who 
knows  how  to  go  from  the  State  School  for  the  Deaf  Mutes,  in  Tren- 
ton, New  Jersey,  down  to  the  State  House,  and  knows  how  far  it  is  in 
miles,  and  just  about  how  tired  he  would  be  if  he  walked  it,  and  all 
that  sort  of  thing,  and  teach  him  the  shape  and  size  of  the  earth,  than 
it  would  to  take  a  boy  who  has  grasped  the  earth  as  a  unit;  who  has 
looked  at  the  globe  and  map  and  then  got  it  thoroughly  into  his  head 
that  from  this  little  spot  on  the  map  to  the  other  is  ninety  miles,  and 
how  long  it  would  take  an  express  train  to  go,  and  that  it  would  cost 
him  one  dollar  and  seventy-five  cents. 

Rev.  Gallaudet:  I  have  been  so  long  out  of  the  class-room  that 
perhaps  I  can  hardly  add  anything  of  interest  or  profit  to  this  discus- 
sion. But  if  I  recollect  right,  I  found  geography— that  is,  the  names 
of  cities,  rivers,  and  places— a  sort  of  alterative  to  the  excessive  prac- 
tice of  language.  Such  little  exercises  as  these  were  of  interest  to  the 
class,  and  would  stimulate  them  in  their  studies.    After  they  had 


116  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

gone  through  this  preliminary  work,  to  give  the  deaf  mutes  a  general 
idea  of  geography,  it  seems  to  me  acts  as  a  stimulant  to  them.  They 
want  something  like  an  intellectual  gymnasium.  Let  the  pupil  write 
all  the  names  of  cities,  rivers,  mountains,  and  so  forth,  that  he  can  think 
of  that  begin  with  "A,"  and  tell  in  what  countries  they  are.  He  will 
not  at  first  have  a  distinct  and  clear  idea  of  them,  but  he  will  know 
that  they  are  spots  on  the  earth  called  by  those  names.  And  that 
very  exercise  would  assist  him  in  the  study  of  words,  and  tend  to 
make  him  interested  in  all  parts  of  the  earth;  and  by  using  his  mem- 
ory in  that  way  you  quicken  his  intellect.  And  as  teachers  often 
wish  to  have  pupils  employed  at  something  while  they  are  correcting 
compositions  or  something  else,  tell  them  to  get  their  slates,  and  let 
them  engage  in  exercises  of  this  kind  to  show  how  much  is  stored  in 
their  memory. 

I  think  that  geography  interests  pupils  very  much.  I  have  found 
them  interested  in  learning  the  names  of  cities,  mountains,  and 
rivers  all  over  the  earth,  and  it  has  astonished  me  to  see  how  much 
they  remembered  correctly.  I  would  have  them  write  a  whole  list  of 
places  beginning  with  "A,"  and  have  them  tell  me  where  they  were; 
and  then  I  would  take  up  all  places  beginning  with  "  B."  This  plan 
used  to  help  me  very  much  in  keeping  the  pupils  busy;  and  they  were 
all  interested  in  it,  and  it  was  useful  as  an  intellectual  gymnasium. 

Here  the  section  adjourned  until  Monday  morning. 


THIRD  DAY. 


The  convention  met  Sunday  afternoon  at  three  o'clock  in  general 
session,  President  Gillett  in  the  chair.  The  attendance,  which  was 
small  when  the  assembly  bell  rang,  gradually  increased  until  five 
o'clock,  when  a  majority  of  the  members  of  the  convention  were 
present,  earnest  listeners  to  a  discussion  of  the  moral  and  religious 
phases  of  this  work.  The  subject  as  ordained  by  the  Business  Com- 
mittee was  "Sabbath  Exercises  in  an  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and 
Dumb." 

President  Gillett  said  that  it  was  the  practice  in  the  Illinois 
institution  to  deliver  a  lecture  or  sermon  every  Sabbath  morning,  and 
in  the  afternoon  a  meeting  of  teachers  and  pupils  was  held.  At  this 
meeting  he  generally  read  the  verses  of  a  psalm  alternately  with  one 
of  his  teachers,  the  pupils  following,  and  repeating  in  the  sign  lan- 
guage the  verse  as  repeated  by  the  teacher.  They  then  recited  the 
Ten  Commandments,  the  Apostles'  Creed,  and  the  Gloria  Patria. 
The  lesson  was  then  read  and  the  pupils  repeated  a  hymn,  generally 
with  a  chorus.  It  was  very  beautiful  to  see  these  pupils  reciting  in 
concert  in  the  sign  language,  and  the  exercise  never  failed  to  produce 
the  most  excellent  results.  President  Gillett  then  assumed  that  the 
convention  was  a  Sunday  school  for  deaf  mutes,  and  that  he  was  the 
superintendent,  the  members  of  the  convention  being  the  pupils. 
Mr.  Walker  acted  as  interpreter.  He  announced  the  hymn  begin- 
ning "The  Lord  is  in  His  temple,  let  all  the  world  keep  silence  before 
Him."  The  exercise  was  carried  out  as  President  Gillett  suggested, 
and  was  indeed  impressive,  the  members  standing  and  repeating  in 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  117 

the  silent  eloquence  of  the  sign  language  the  ideas  of  the  hymn 
as  interpreted  by  Mr.  Walker,  the  only  sound  audible  in  the  hall 
being  the  rustling  of  clothing  as  the  arms  and  hands  of  the  assem- 
blage gave  expression  to  the  beautiful  thoughts.  Mr.  Gillett  then 
read  a  passage  from  the  Scriptures,  selecting  Luke  IV,  beginning  at 
the  fourteenth  verse,  descriptive  of  Christ's  entry  into  the  synagogue 
at  Nazareth.  He  also  read  the  passage  descriptive  of  the  Savior's 
departure  from  Galilee  and  the  miraculous  cure  of  the  man  who  was 
deaf  and  dumb.  Mr.  Weed  then  led  in  prayer,  closing  with  the 
Lord's  Prayer,  which  was  repeated  in  concert.  Mr.  Gillett  then 
called  five  young  ladies  and  two  young  men,  all  of  them  deaf  mutes, 
upon  the  platform,  and  gave  them  the  hymn  "Jesus,  Lover  of  My 
Soul,"  with  the  chorus: 

"  I  do  believe, 
I  will  believe, 
Jesus  set  me  free." 

The  verses  of  the  hymn  were  recited  in  the  graceful  movement  of 
the  sign  language  by  the  mutes,  each  repeating  a  verse,  at  the  close  of 
which  they  gave  the  chorus  in  concert.  Mr.  Gillett  explained  that 
exercises  of  this  kind  interested  the  pupils  more  than  his  lectures 
could,  and  being  appropriate  for  the  occasion  prepared  them  for  what 
he  had  to  say  later. 

J.  A.  McClure,  of  Nebraska,  then  read  a  paper  on 

MORAL  PHASE  OF  OUR  WORK. 

The  work  of  educating  the  deaf  has  assumed  vast  proportions  in 
this  country,  from  its  small  beginning  at  Hartford,,  about  three  quar- 
ters of  a  century  ago. 

The  rapid  progress  of  this  work,  and  the  zeal  and  devotion  mani- 
fested by  so  many  who  have  devoted  their  lives  and  best  energies  to 
the  elevation  of  this  unfortunate  class  of  our  citizens,  speak  volumes 
for  our  Christian  institutions  and  the  philanthropy  of  our  people. 

Ours  is  truly  a  missionary  work  of  no  small  importance,  and  may 
we  not  safely  say,  that  it  stands  at  the  head  of  the  list,  in  this  respect, 
for  reasons  that  we  shall  mention. 

The  importance  and  imperative  necessity  of  the  moral  instruction 
of  the  deaf,  may  be  better  understood,  when  we  consider  the  utter 
darkness  which  envelops  the  mind  of  every  uneducated  deaf  mute, 
who  has  had  no  opportunity  of  gaining  knowledge  before  becoming 
deaf. 

I  think  that  every  congenital  deaf  person  in  this  audience  will  tes- 
tify to  the  fact,  that  the  uneducated  congenital  deaf  mute  can  have 
no  correct  knowledge  of  God  or  their  relation  to  him;  no  conception 
of  the  plan  of  salvation  through  Jesus  Christ;  no  idea  of  a  future  state. 

Was  it  not  such  reflections  as  these  that  prompted  our  noble  Gai- 
laudet  to  abandon  his  plans  and  prospects  for  a  useful  life  in  the 
ministry,  and  devote  his  rare  talents  and  energies  to  the  lifting  up 
and  enlightening  of  these  neglected  ones. 

Such  an  inspiration  could  not  have  been  other  than  from  above; 
and  the  zeal  and  consecration  with  which  he  entered  into  and  pur- 
sued the  work  to  a  successful  issue,  has  won  for  him  the  admiration 
of  the  world ;  the  most  profound  respect  to  his  memory,  of  every  lover 
of  humanity;  and  may  I  not  say,  a  crown  that  shall  be  adorned  with 
many  jewels. 


118  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

I  have  felt  that  the  moral  phase  of  our  work  has  not  been  given  suf- 
ficient prominence  in  our  conventions,  or  in  our  institution  papers. 

A  grand  work  has  been  done,  and  is  being  done,  in  all  our  institu- 
tions, in  this  direction;  but  it  seems  to  me  the  time  has  come  when 
greater  effort  should  be  put  forth  for  the  moral  development  of  these 
unfortunate  children,  intrusted  to  our  care  and  instruction.  We 
should  strive  by  example,  by  precept,  and  by  every  means  in  our 
power,  to  lead  them  to  the  Rock  that  is  higher  than  we,  not  ceasing 
in  our  efforts  until  they  are  led  into  the  light,  and  give  evidence  of 
true  and  thorough  conversion.  Who  is  more  capable  of  doing  this 
work  than  the  earnest  Christian  teacher?  For  such,  I  trust,  is  every 
one  engaged  in  this  important  work.  By  improving  the  various 
opportunities  that  present  themselves,  the  mind  of  the  child  may  be 
gradually  impressed,  and  led  step  by  step  in  the  way  of  life. 

This  I  believe  to  be  the  duty  of  every  one  who  assumes  the  respon- 
sible position  of  an  instructor  of  these  unfortunate  children. 

Every  one  who  has  any  experience  in  this  work  knows  how  entirely 
dependent  are  these  children  upon  their  teachers  for  all  the  knowl- 
edge they  receive,  and  with  what  implicit  confidence  they  look  to  the 
teacher  for  new  light  upon  any  subject  that  may  be  presented. 

Especially  is  this  true  in  regard  to  spiritual  things.  When  once 
the  mind  begins  to  unfold  to  a  realization  of  the  fact  that  it  is  pos- 
sessed of  a  spiritual  life,  that  "  it  is  not  all  of  life  to  live,  nor  all  of 
death  to  die,"  with  what  earnest  desire  does  the  pupil  then  look  to 
the  teacher  for  truth  and  light.  If  this  desire  be  satisfied  by  the 
teacher  to  the  best  of  his  or  her  ability,  when  first  awakened  in  the 
mind,  then  may  the  child  be  easily  led  in  the  way  of  life,  almost 
unconsciously  to  itself.  But  if  the  true  light  which  it  so  much  desires 
be  withheld,  and  something  else  substituted  in  its  place,  there  is  dan- 
ger that  the  impressions  made  upon  the  mind  may  result  in  diversion 
from  the  truth,  and  perchance  moral  wreck.  Who  is  responsible  for 
such  a  result?  Can  any  teacher  prove  false  to  such  a  trust?  I  tell 
you  it  is  no  trifling  matter  to  assume  such  responsibilities,  and  we 
cannot  throw  them  off.  "He  that  winneth  souls  is  wise;  and  he  that 
turneth  many  to  righteousness,  shall  shine  as  the  stars,  forever  and 
ever." 

The  condition  of  a  deaf  mute  child  is  vastly  different  from  that  of 
a  speaking  child.  The  latter  has  opportunities  of  hearing  the  con- 
versation of  those  around  it,  and  of  being  instructed  in  Sabbath 
school,  or  by  religious  parents;  but  the  former  is  entirely  shut  out 
from  any  knowledge  of  these  things  until  made  known  to  it  by  the 
teacher.  When  we  consider  the  fact  that  the  earliest  impressions  of 
the  mind  are  the  most  lasting,  and  have  the  greatest  influence  upon 
the  life,  how  important  that  we,  as  teachers,  be  faithful  to  our  trust, 
and  see  to  it  that  good  seed  shall  be  sown  in  this  fertile  soil,  prepared 
by  the  divine  hand  for  its  reception.  The  value  to  these  children  of 
the  cultivation  of  their  physical  and  mental  powers  cannot  be  esti- 
mated; but,  after  all,  they  should  only  be  considered  as  stepping- 
stones,  or  helps,  for  their  higher  development  into  a  spiritual  life. 

The  regular  chapel  services  that  are  observed  in  most  of  our  insti- 
tutions are  very  good  in  their  place,  but  are  not  sufficient  for  the 
accomplishment  of  this  important  work. 

Prayer  meetings  should  be  organized  for  the  pupils,  and  encour- 
aged by  the  presence  of  as  many  teachers  as  can  conveniently  be 
present;  in  which  all  the  larger  pupils  should  be  encouraged  to  take 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  119 

a  part,  and  to  feel  that  it  is  their  meeting,  and  that  it  is  profitable 
thus  to  wait  upon  the  Lord,  and  renew  their  spiritual  strength,  at 
regular  stated  times. 

As  the  body  requires  food  regularly  for  the  preservation  of  natural 
life,  so  must  the  soul  be  fed  daily  from  above,  with  new  supplies  of 
grace,  that  it  may  live  and  grow  into  perfect  spiritual  manhood. 

The  teachers  should  make  it  a  point  to  drop  in  to  these  meetings 
as  often  as  convenient,  and  sometimes  when  not  entirely  convenient, 
and  encourage  the  work  by  their  presence  and  counsel.  Hold  up 
Christ  before  them  as  the  Chiefest  among  ten  thousand,  and  the  One 
altogether  lovely.  The  only  name  given  under  heaven  and  among 
men,  whereby  we  must  be  saved.  By  such  special  efforts  and  services 
the  pupil  is  brought  into  more  intimate  relation  with  God,  and  is 
made  to  feel  that  it  is  a  solemn  thing  to  approach  into  His  presence. 

We  have  been  holding  such  special  meetings  in  our  institution  at 
Omaha  for  the  last  two  years,  and  great  good  has  resulted  to  the 
pupils;  not  only  in  the  moral  growth  and  development  of  many,  but 
in  general  good  order  in  their  daily  lives.  "Godliness  is  profitable 
unto  all  things;  having  the  promise  of  the  life  that  now  is,  and  of 
that  which  is  to  come." 

I  believe  this  to  be  the  grand  secret  of  true  success  in  any  institu- 
tion. "  Get  the  heart  right,  and  the  life  will  be  right;"  but  while  the 
heart  and  mind  remain  under  the  influence  of  sin,  how  can  we 
expect  good  order,  or  the  best  results  in  any  direction? 

I  think  also  that  special  effort  should  be  made,  by  conversation 
with  the  pupils  separately  on  this  subject,  as  his  or  her  case  may 
require.  In  this  way  we  may  gain  their  confidence,  and  be  able  to 
give  them  such  necessary  advice  or  encouragement  as  cannot  be  done 
in  the  promiscuous  gathering.  They  feel  that  we  are  interested  in 
them  individually,  and  are  much  more  likely  to  heed  the  admonition 
given. 

Such  work  may,  and  should,  be  accomplished  without  introducing 
any  sectarian  dogmas  or  isms.  Give  them  the  pure  milk  of  the  Word ; 
and,  like  Paul,  "know  nothing  among  them  save  Jesus  Christ,  and 
Him  crucified." 

God  speed  the  day  when  our  institutions  shall  vie  with  each  other 
in  holding  up  the  banner  of  the  Cross,  by  a  holy  zeal  on  the  part  of 
every  teacher  and  officer  for  the  spiritual  well-being  of  all  their 
pupils,  and  in  recording  them  as  Christian  boys  and  girls,  when  going 
out  from  the  institutions  to  engage  in  the  more  permanent  and  active 
pursuits  of  life;  then  shall  they  be  prepared  for  good  citizens,  and 
shall  be  factors  in  the  great  work  of  evangelizing  the  world. 

Mr.  Noyes  read  a  paper  on  "The  Importance  of  Religious  Train- 
ing for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb."  He  considered  the  moral  and  religious 
element  of  the  utmost  importance  in  institutions  of  this  character, 
and  did  not  think  any  man  fit  to  be  Superintendent  of  such  an  insti- 
tution unless  he  was  a  godly  man  and  professed  his  belief  before  the 
whole  world.  If  it  was  necessary  that  any  family  should  be  imbued^ 
with  religious  ideas,  it  was  that  gathered  within  the  walls  of  a  deaf 
and  dumb  institution.  He  then  detailed  the  Sunday  school  methods 
of  the  Minnesota  institution,  stating  that  about  one  third  of  the 
pupils  there  were  of  Roman  Catholic  parentage,  and  that  the  exer- 
cises were  broad  and  undenominational  enough  to  include  every  sect 
without  offending  the  prejudices  of  any  of  them.     A  monthly  review 


120  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

and  examination  in  the  work  were  features  of  the  Sunday  school  in 
this  institution. 

Professor  Hotchkiss,  a  deaf  mute,  described  the  Sunday  school 
work  at  the  Washington  College,  where  the  Sunday  school  has  an 
entirely  separate  existence  from  the  college  itself.  A  feature  of  the 
work  in  this  institution  was  the  contribution  of  money  by  the  pupils 
for  charitable  purposes.  On  one  occasion  they  contributed  $80  per 
annum  for  the  education  of  a  pupil,  a  native  girl,  in  Smyrna.  Local 
charities  are  also  assisted.  Last  year  they  sent  money  to  Alaska  for 
the  education  of  the  Indians  in  that  Territory,  and  a  short  time  ago 
they  donated  a  sum  to  assist  the  deaf  and  dumb  institution  recently 
organized  in  Santa  Fe. 

Dr.Gallaudet,  of  Washington,  thought  that  all  instruction  should 
be  undenominational,  and  they  could  not  be  too  careful  in  the  avoid- 
ance of  anything  that  might  tend  to  give  an  institution  a  denomina- 
tional character.  Religion  should  be  plainly  and  constantly  taught. 
A  spiritual  religion  should  be  taught,  a  religion  that  inculcates  the 
idea  of  a  future  life  and  that  man  possesses  an  immortal  soul.  The 
institution  should  be  erected  in  the  fear  of  God  rather  than  as  a 
peculiarly  Christian  establishment,  for  the  Israelites  are  as  God  fear- 
ing as  any-  Christian,  and  their  tenets  should  be  respected.  It  would 
not  be  right  to  proselyte  among  the  pupils,  and  they  should  be 
allowed  and  encouraged  to  grow  up  to  honor  the  faith  of  their 
parents.  They  should  be  taught  that  this  is  a  free  land  and  that  it  is 
wrong  for  one  to  say  to  another,  "  I  am  better  than  thou."  He  was 
earnestly  opposed  to  having  the  public  money  used  for  denomina- 
tional purposes  in  the  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  and  he  would 
go  so  far  as  to  advocate  that  sectarian  religious  training  be  put  with- 
out the  walls  of  every  institution  in  the  country.  In  his  own 
practice  no  line  was  drawn  between  the  Roman  Catholic  and  the 
Protestant,  any  more  than  there  was  between  the  Baptist,  the  Meth- 
odist, and  the  Presbyterian.  He  had  carried  out  this  idea  in  the 
Washington  College,  and  at  their  last  exhibition,  Father  Doonan,  of 
the  Georgetown  University,  and  chief  of  the  Society  of  Jesus  in  this 
country,  had,  at  the  conclusion,  delivered  an  extemporaneous  prayer 
and  pronounced  his  benediction  and  blessing  upon  the  institution. 

Mr.  Weed  delivered  a  discourse  on  "  Missionary  Work  in  Deaf 
Mute  Institutions,"  in  which  he  claimed  that  as  the  instructors  of 
the  deaf  and  dumb  stood  in  the  same  relation  towards  their  pupils  as 
parents,  they  should  train  them  as  parents  would  in  teaching  them 
their  religious  duties. 

Miss  Camp,  of  Ohio,  gave  her  experience  of  what  may  be  accom- 
plished in  Sunday  school  work  among  the  deaf  and  dumb. 

religious  societies  among  the  deaf. 

Some  years  ago,  Miss  Sarah  Perry,  a  young  lady  teacher  in  the 
Ohio  institution,  commenced  holding  weekly  religious  meetings 
among  the  girls.  It  was  her  custom  to  instruct  them  concerning  their 
spiritual  needs  and  daily  duties.  These  gatherings  were,  I  am  told, 
invariably  well  attended  and  bore  good  and  lasting  fruit.  It  was  my 
good  fortune  to  meet  and  to  know  her  during  the  first  few  months  of 
my  work  as  a  teacher  previous  to  her  death,  which  took  place  in  the 
year  1879. 

Three  years  later,  on  having  become  sufficiently  familiar  with  the 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  121 

sign  language,  it  was  my  privilege  to  take  up  and  carry  on  the  same 
general  plan.  At  first  only  four  or  five  young  ladies  attended  the 
meetings,  but  soon  the  interest  grew,  and  before  the  month  was  out 
some  forty  had  enrolled  their  names  as  members  of  a  society  aiming 
at  better  Christian  living  and  feeling  among  themselves  and  toward 
officers  and  teachers.  A  set  of  resolutions  was  drawn  up  and  signed, 
and  the  society,  at  a  subsequent  meeting,  was  christened  "The  Sarah 
Perry  Society,"  in  honor  of  its  deceased  founder.  At  the  close  of  the 
first  year  some  fourteen  or  fifteen  had  joined  their  respective  churches. 
The  membership  increased  to  about  one  hundred  the  second  year, 
and  has  since  maintained  that  number.  Some  forty  in  all  have 
become  church  members  during  a  three-year  experiment. 

I  have,  of  course,  as  leader,  met  with  many  discouraging  circum- 
stances, and  with  difficulties  more  or  less  trying  and  serious,  and 
which  more  experience  on  my  own  part  may  have  averted.  There 
were  the  usual  number  of  lukewarm  and  disaffected  members  also, 
common  to  organizations  of  all  kinds;  but  the  steady  improvement 
of  some  and  the  earnest  leadership  of  others  convinces  me  that  much 
good  may  be  accomplished  by  some  such  means. 

In  the  days  of  the  elder  Dr.  Gallaudet  the  religious  education  of 
the  deaf  was  looked  on  as  a  sacred  duty.  Perhaps  in  our  efforts  to 
train  them  mentally  we  overlook  some  of  their  spiritual  needs.  True 
it  is,  Christ  alone  can  change  the  hearts  of  men,  but  there  is  much 
we  can  do  toward  leading  His  children  to  His  feet.  I  have  found  by 
experience,  that  personal  interest  in  the  individual  pupil  is  the  surest 
way  of  gaining  his  or  her  attention  on  religious  subjects.  Given  a 
society  of  some  such  kind  as  described  above,  no  matter  how  small 
or  feeble,  the  mere  being  united  and  brought  into  personal  contact 
with  each  other  and  the  leader,  has  in  it  a  power  to  make  and  hold 
interest  beyond  words,  to  say  nothing  of  its  being  a  valuable  auxiliary 
to  regular  church  work. 

Mr.  Hassenstaub,  of  Illinois,  a  deaf  mute,  detailed  methods  by 
which  the  Sunday  school  work  may  be  made  very  interesting  and 
instructive  to  deaf  mutes. 

Warring  Wilkinson,  of  the  California  institution,  said  that  the 
Sunday  school  in  that  institution  was  purely  an  affair  of  the  pupils. 
The  classes  were  all  conducted  and  instructed  by  the  pupils,  and  the 
credit  and  honor  of  its  organization  was  wholly  due  to  Mr.  d'Estrella, 
a  pupil,  who  had  been  its  Superintendent  for  twelve  years.  The 
value  of  this  method  was  apparent  in  the  fact  that  it  brought  the 
pupils  into  active  work  and  inspired  them  with  a  certain  responsi- 
bility. He  had  attempted  to  exercise  no  control  over  them  in  any 
particular,  and  he  was  certain  that  lasting  beneficial  results  had  been 
attained. 

Professor  Crouter,  of  Philadelphia,  stated  that  the  work  in  that 
institution  was  very  similar,  and  the  results  were  very  satisfactory, 
because  the  pupils  take  an  individual  interest  in  the  work.  In  the 
Philadelphia  institution  the  Catholic  children  attend  mass  and  the 
Catholic  Sunday  school,  returning  to  the  lecture  and  sermon  at  the 
institution. 

Mr.  Moses,  of  Tennessee,  described  the  methods  in  that  institution, 
which  are  similar  to  those  of  the  California  institution,  the  Superin- 
tendent being  a  deaf  mute,  and  the  more  advanced  pupils  acting  as 
teachers.  He  had  found  that  under  these  conditions  the  lessons  were 
more  thoroughly  learned  than  in  any  ordinary  methods. 


122         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Erastus  Brooks,  of  New  York,  stated  that  in  that  State  a  general 
appropriation  of  money  was  made  for  the  support  of  six  deaf  and 
dumb  institutions,  one  of  which  was  filled  with  Catholic  children  and 
another  by  those  of  Jewish  parentage.  In  answer  to  questions  by 
members  of  the  convention,  Mr.  Brooks  stated  that  these  latter 
schools  were  supported  out  of  State  money. 

Dr.  Gallaudet  said  that  it  was  his  conviction  that  when  a  State 
allowed  money  for  the  support  of  a  denominational  institution,  even 
though  that  institution  may  have  become  so  after  its  establishment 
as  a  public  institution,  they  acted  inconsistently  with  the  spirit  of  our 
Government.  He  would  object  to  the  division  of  public  moneys  for 
the  support  of  Baptist,  Methodist,  or  Presbyterian  institutions  as 
much  as  he  did  to  the  appropriation  of  money  for  the  Roman  Cath- 
olic or  Israelite.  He  felt  the  same  in  this  matter  as  he  did  regarding 
the  money  appropriated  for  the  public  schools,  and  he  was  not  aware 
that  any  State  had  ever  appropriated  money  for  the  support  of  de- 
nominational public  schools.  He  did  not  blame  the  Buffalo  and 
Fordham  institution  managements  for  getting  all  they  could  out  of 
the  State,  but  the  fact  that  they  were  permitted  to  exist  as  separate 
denominational  institutions,  supported  at  the  public  expense,  was 
certainly  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  American  institutions.. 

Professor  Noyes,  of  Minnesota,  thought  that  a  parent  could  send 
his  child  where  he  pleased,  and  the  State  had  no  right  to  dictate  in 
the  matter  to  compel  him  to  place  his  child  in  any  institution  where 
the  preponderance  of  religious  instruction  favors  any  one  denomina- 
tion. All  the  State  required,  and  all  that  they  could  take  cognizance 
of,  was  the  education  of  the  child.  The  pupil  should  receive  good 
moral  instruction,  and  permitted  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  sectarian 
religion  as  far  as  the  institution  was  concerned. 

The  convention  then  adjourned  until  to-day,  at  nine  o'clock. 


MONDAY,  JULY  19,  1886. 

MORNING   SESSION — NORMAL   SECTION. 

The  Chairman,  Mr.  Ely,  called  the  meeting  to  order;  and  the  Rev. 
Job  Turner  offered  up  a  prayer. 

Mr.  Weed:  The  first  exercise  this  morning  will  be  conducted  by 
Miss  Harris  of  the  Maryland  institution,  the  exact  nature  of  which 
she  will  at  once  explain. 

Miss  R.  R.  Harris:  The  language  exercises  of  which  you  see  an 
illustration  on  the  slate,  are  not  designed  as  foundation  work  for  the 
structure  of  language  or  for  lessons  in  grammar.  The  pupils  with 
whom  I  use  this  method  have  a  fair  use  of  English  and  the  difficul- 
ties of  tense  have  beep  surmounted  to  a  considerable  degree.  When 
called  upon  to  write  a  letter  or  story  given  them  in  signs,  their  work  is 
quite  satisfactory.  And  yet,  in  these  letters  and  stories  I  frequently 
find  an  ignorance  of  some  term  or  phrase  in  daily,  almost  hourly  use, 
connected  as  it  is  with  the  life  of  the  household,  the  duties  of  the 
school-room  or  workshop,  or  the  pastimes  of  the  playground.  Other 
teachers  of  intermediate  classes  have  no  doubt  had  the  same  experi- 
ence.   This  ignorance  is  the  fault  of  neither  teachers  nor  pupils,  who 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DEAF. 


123 


through  a  period  of  four  or  five  years  have  been  occupied  with  pri- 
mary lessons  in  language. 

Text-books  and  original  lessons  have  supplied  the  pupils  with  a 
large  stock  of  words  and  phrases  which  they  use  with  a  fair  degree  of 
fluency.  They  have  acquired  much  that  is  valuable  during  the  time 
they  have  been  under  instruction.  We  all  know,  however,  that  to 
these  pupils,  and  even  to  those  of  a  higher  grade,  the  vernacular,  as 
one  may  say,  of  every  day  life  is  almost  a  sealed  book.  Here  and 
there  are  expressions  with  which  they  are  familiar,  but  in  the  major- 
ity of  instances  this  vernacular  is  for  them  an  unknown  tongue.  For 
instance,  when  told  "Make  up  your  bed,"  the  pupil  understands  what 
she  is  to  do,  but  when  requested  to  "tuck  in  the  bed  clothes,"  or  to 
"turn  them  down,"  she  looks  at  you  inquiringly  and  asks  "What  do 
you  mean  ?  "  She  knows  that  her  mother  mixes  flour,  yeast,  and  milk 
to  make  bread,  but  she  does  not  know  that  this  mixture  is  called  "  the 
sponge"  or  that  her  mother  "sets  it  to  raise."  A  boy  goes  on  a  fish- 
ing excursion,  and  in  writing  an  account  of  the  adventures  of  the  day, 
he  says  that  he  put  a  worm  on  his  hook  and  a  fish  bit  the  worm  a 
little,  but  he  did  not  catch  it.  This  statement  is  sufficiently  clear,  to 
be  sure;  we  know  what  he  means;  but  would  it  not  be  better  did  he 
use  the  terms  common  to  this  sport,  and  say  "  I  baited  my  hook,"  "  the 
fish  nibbled  the  bait?"  "The  doctor  held  my  wrist"  writes  a  pupil 
when  he  wishes  to  say  "  The  doctor  felt  my  pulse."  Instances  could 
be  multiplied  where  expressions  used  only  in  connection  with  parti- 
cular subjects  are  greatly  needed  by  the  pupils  of  all  our  intermediate 
classes.  To  meet  the  wants  of  my  own  class  I  have  prepared  a  series 
of  lesson  papers  resembling  in  form  the  following  exercises: 

CHURCH. 

Nouns. 

Cathedral.  Meeting-house.  Church.  Church-bells.  Steeple.  Vestibule.  Gallery. 
Middle-aisle.  Side-aisle.  Chancel.  Font.  Altar.  Pulpit.  Lecturn.  Bible.  Chapter. 
Verse.  Text.  Hymn-book.  Hymn.  Doxology.  Prayer-book.  Prayer.  Organ.  Organ- 
ist. Choir.  Collection-plate;  basket.  Communion.  Communion-service.  Priest.  Min- 
ister. Sermon.  Sexton.  Congregation-Elder.  Steward.  Deacon.  Denomination. 
Episcopal.  Methodist.  Presbyterian.  Baptist.  Lutheran.  German-Reformed.  United- 
Brethren.    Quaker.    Roman-Catholic. 

Adjectives,  Adverbs,  etc. 

Congregation — Large;  small;  attentive. 
Services — Solemn ;  impressive,  etc. 
Sermon — Eloquent;  fine;  interesting;  instructive. 
Music — Fine;  sweet;  good. 


Phrases. 


Services  are  held  at  — . 
The  church  bells  ring. 

—  attend  church. 

—  conduct  —  to  a  seat. 

—  walk  up ;  down  the  aisle. 

—  kneel. 

—  offer  prayer. 

—  bow  — '  head. 

—  announce  the  text,  hymn,  etc. 

—  make  the  announcements. 

—  sing  — . 

-  unite  in  singing. 

—  play  on  the  organ. 

—  offer  —  to  — . 

—  accept  — . 


—  preach. 

—  listen  to  — . 

—  take  up  a  collection. 

—  put  —  into  the  collection. 

—  receive  into  the  church. 

—  confirm  — . 

—  unite  with  the  church. 

—  belong  to  the  church. 

—  is  a  member  of  the  church. 

—  administer  the  communion. 

—  commune. 

—  baptize  — . 

—  sing  the  doxology. 

—  pronounce  the  benediction. 

—  dismiss  — . 


124  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 


Nouns. 

Appetite.  Diet.  Headache.  Chill.  Fever.  A  sore  throat.  Pain.  Stupor.  Delirium- 
Attack.  Disease.  Eruption.  Blister.  Tongue.  Pulse.  Stomach.  Doctor.  Patient. 
Nurse.  Medicine.  Dose.  Drops.  Pill.  Powder.  Prescription.  Label.  Drug  Store. 
Druggist.  A  teaspoonful;  tablespoonful  of  — .  Sickroom.  Hospital.  Message.  Tele- 
phone message.    Telegram. 

Adjectives,  Adverbs,  etc. 

Person— Thin;  pale;  weak;  sick;  ill;  worse;  delirious;  conscious;  unconscious. 

Throat— Inflamed ;  ulcerated;  swollen. 

Tongue— Coated. 

Face — Flushed. 

Lips — Parched. 

Pulse— <4uick;  slow. 

Disease— Contagious ;  infectious ;  dangerous. 

Every  hour ;  every  two  hours.    Once  a  day ;  three  times  a  day. 

Before  meals.    After  meals. 

Phrases. 

What  is  the  matter?  A  fever  increases;  passes  oft. 

How  do  you  feel  ?  —  suffer. 

—  lose  —  appetite.  —  fall  into  a  stupor. 

—  have  a  poor  appetite.  —  is  at  the  point  of  death. 

—  fall  oft*.  —  open  — '  mouth. 

—  look  pale;  thin.  —  put  out  —  tongue. 

—  complain  of  — .  —  examine  — . 

—  feel  weak;  sick.  —  feel  — '  pulse. 

—  get  sick.  —  prescribe  for  — . 

—  get  well.  —  write  a  prescription  for  — . 

—  become  (grow)  ill.  —  give  directions  about  — . 

—  become  (grow)  worse.  —  follow  — '  directions. 

—  feel  sick  at  the  stomach.  —  give  a  dose  of  medicine  to. 

—  vomit  — .  —  put  a  blister  on  — . 

—  break  out  with ;   is  broken   out  with      —  dress  a  blister. 

measles,  etc.  —  gargle  the  throat. 

The  head  aches.  —  mop;  paint;  spray  the  throat. 

—  have  a  headache.  —  take  a  disease  from  — . 

—  have  an  attack  of  — .  —  sit  up  with  — . 

—  have  a  sore  throat.  —  air  the  room. 

—  have  a  pain  in  — .  —  send  for  — . 

—  have  a  chill.  —  telephone  for  — . 

—  have  a  fever.  —  telegraph  for  — . 

These  lesson  papers  deal  with  subjects  which  form  the  general  top- 
ics of  conversation  in  ordinary,  everyday  life.  The  forms  of  expres- 
sion given  are  not  always  the  most  elegant,  but  they  are  in  constant 
use,  and  are  therefore  essential  to  the  pupil.  My  aim  has  been  to  sup- 
ply my  pupils,  not  with  all  the  expressions  common  to  a  given  sub- 
ject, but  with  those  most  important.  So  far  as  possible,  I  have  limited 
the  vocabulary  and  the  idioms,  wishing  to  avoid  any  confusion  of 
ideas  that  might  arise  from  a  more  extended  lesson.  The  success  of 
these  exercises  with  my  class  has  been  most  gratifying.  They  have 
showed  the  greatest  interest  in  the  subjects  as  they  have  been  pre- 
sented, and  their  compositions  written  upon  this  method  have  been 
most  creditable. 

When  introducing  a  new  subject,  I  place  it  upon  the  slate  in  the 
form  as  here  presented.  A  careful  explanation  of  the  vocabulary, 
and  of  the  phrases  then  follows,  with  frequent  illustrations,  given 
either  upon  another  slate,  or  by  means  of  the  manual  alphabet. 
When  sure  that  the  lesson  is  fully  understood,  the  pupils  are  required 
to  write  a  composition  upon  the  subject.  Of  course,  I  do  not  require 
them  to  use  all  the  nouns  and  phrases,  but  simply  those  that  will 
convey  the  ideas  they  wish  to  express.  Printed  slips  of  these  subject 
lessons  are  given  to  each  pupil,  and  by  means  of  mucilage,  they  are 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  125 

preserved  in  book  form.  At  frequent  intervals,  they  are  called  upon  to 
write  an  exercise  upon  some  paper  in  the  collection.  This  exercise 
serves  as  a  review  lesson.  Towards  the  close  of  the  year,  they  are 
required  to  hand  in  a  composition  upon  one  of  these  subjects,  writ- 
ten without  the  aid  of  the  papers. 

The  following  composition,  prepared  by  one  of  my  pupils,  illus- 
trates the  use  of  these  lesson  papers: 

SICKNESS. 

Last  year,  Carrie  McKenzie  lost  her  appetite,  and  nothing  tasted  good.  She  felt  weak. 
Miss  Shugh  saw  that  she  looked  pale  and  sick.  She  said  to  Carrie,  while  she  waa  Bitting 
on  a  chair  in  the  sewing  room  :  "  What  is  the  matter  with  you?  "  Then  she  said  that  the 
did  not  feel  well.  Then  Miss  Shugh  told  her  to  go  up  stairs,  to  get  in  the  bed  in  the  Bids 
room.  While  she  was  going  up  stairs,  suddenly  she  felt  sick  at  the  stomach  and  she 
vomited.  Miss  Shugh  heard  a  noise  on  the  stairs,  and  then  she  went  and  found  Carrie 
h;i<l  fallen  on  the  stairs.  Then  she  was  very  much  frightened  and  carried  her  into  the 
sick  room.  Miss  Shugh  thought  that  she  had  better  send  for  a  doctor.  He  came  to  the 
sick  room  and  said  to  Carrie:  "  What  is  the  matter  with  you?  "  She  said  that  she  had  a 
bad  headache,  and  she  had  a  sore  throat.  The  doctor  told  her  to  open  her  mouth.  She 
did  so,  and  then  she  put  out  her  tongue.  He  examined  it.  He  told  Miss  Shugh  that  her 
tongue  was  coated.  He  examined  her  throat,  and  said  that  her  throat  was  inflamed.  He 
did  not  tell  Carrie  about  it,  because  she  could  not  understand  what  he  said.  He  felt  her 
pulse.  He  said  that  she  had  a  fever.  He  wrote  a  prescription  for  Carrie,  and  gave  direc- 
tions about  the  medicines.  Miss  Shugh  said :  "  Yes,  I  will  follow  your  directions,  exactly." 
She  gave  a  dose  of  medicine  to  Carrie  three  times  a  day.  She  mopped  Carrie's  throat. 
Miss  Shugh  told  her  that  she  would  get  well  soon  under  the  doctor's  care.  She  suffered 
some  with  her  throat,  but  she  got  better.    She  stayed  in  the  sick  room  a  few  days. 

The  girls  said :  "  Poor  Carrie !  Poor  Carrie !  "  Carrie  has  been  well  since  then.  Miss 
Shugh  told  her  that  she  must  be  careful  not  to  get  a  cold.    She  is  a  bright  little  girl. 

M.  F.  S. 

Prof.  F.  W.  Booth:  How  long  had  that  pupil  been  in  school? 

Miss  Harris:  Five  or  six  years.  The  pupils  of  my  class  have  been 
in  school  from  four  to  six  years.  I  have  used  these  lists  during  the 
past  four  years. 

Professor  Booth:  Is  this  pupil  deaf  and  dumb? 

Miss  Harris:  She  articulates;  but  she  is  a  congenital  mute.  She 
belongs  to  the  articulation  class. 

A  Member:  I  desire  to  ask  if  that  composition  is  now  as  it  was 
written  by  the  pupil? 

Miss  Harris:  With  the  exception  of  a  few  minor  mistakes  in  the 
use  of  tense.    It  is  almost  exactly  as  she  wrote  it.  • 

A  Member:  Do  you  give  all  of  the  names  on  this  list  as  one  lesson? 

Miss  Harris:  Occasionally  I  do.  Sometimes  I  divide  the  lesson. 
I  then  require  them  to  write  on  half  of  the  lesson  one  day,  and  the 
next  day  take  up  the  remaining  half;  the  lesson  of  the  third  day 
would  embrace  the  whole. 

A  Member:  To  what  pupils  do  you  give  that? 

Miss  Harris:  To  pupils  who  have  been  in  school  from  four  to  six 
years. 

A  Member:  Will  you  explain  just  how  you  use  these  phrases? 

Miss  Harris:  I  spell  out  sentences  embracing  these  phrases  or 
write  them  on  another  slate. 

A  Member:  Before  you  give  them  the  phrases  contained  in  the  list 
headed  "Church,"  do  they  know  what  it  means  "to  attend  church?" 

Miss  Harris:  Yes,  many  of  them;  but  an  explanation  of  every 
lesson  is  given  before  they  are  required  to  write  upon  it.  I  explain 
every  phrase  until  I  am  sure  they  understand  it. 

A  Member:  As  that  is  arranged  there,  by  carefully  filling  in  all 
blank  spaces,  they  could  write  a  good  composition. 


126  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

Miss  Harris:  That  is  what  I  wish  them  to  do;  to  use  these  expres- 
sions in  connection  with  this  particular  subject.  I  fill  in  for  them, 
and  give  many  illustrations  before  I  require  them  to  write  these  com- 
positions. I  wish  them  to  understand  that  by  using  these  phrases 
and  nouns,  they  can  express  themselves  clearly  upon  the  subject  of 
attending  church. 

Mr.  A.  S.  Clark:  I  would  like  to  say  that  I  think  Miss  Harris' 
mode  of  instruction  an  excellent  idea;  and  that  she  has  carried  it  out 
admirably.  I  think  the  arrangement  is  good ;  and  I  very  much  hope 
that  all  teachers  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  will  at  some  time  have  the 
benefit  of  these.  I  hope  they  will  be  printed  for  our  use;  for  I  think 
we  can  all  make  use  of  them.  I  know  that  I  shall  be  very  glad  of 
such  help  already  prepared.  It  would  save  me  an  immense  amount 
of  work.  I  should  be  able  to  place  them  in  the  hands  of  my  pupils 
just  when  I  wanted  to,  and  I  am  sure  it  would  help  them  very  much. 

Mr.  Ely  :  It  is  the  intention  to  put  these  in  pamphlet  form  for  dis- 
tribution if  there  is  any  desire  for  them. 

Mr.  Westervelt:  These  have  all  been  printed  from  time  to  time. 

Mr.  Ely:  Yes,  sir;  we  print  lesson  exercises  of  all  kinds  every  day, 
whether  they  are  important  or  for  passing  use.  We  print  them  for 
convenience. 

Mr.  Westervelt:  You  have  a  paper  published  at  your  school. 
Would  it  not  be  a  benefit  to  the  profession,  and  to  all  of  the  institu- 
tions where  papers  are  published,  if  such  work  as  this  done  by  Miss 
Harris  were  printed  in  such  paper  for  the  benefit  of  other  institutions. 
If  it  is  already  set,  all  that  is  necessary  is  simply  to  keep  the  type 
standing  until  a  paper  is  published;  and  it  would  be  very  valuable 
for  other  schools.  We  all  look  through  the  institution  papers,  and 
we  are  very  glad  to  get  hold  of  anything  of  this  kind.  I  think  there 
is  altogether  too  little  of  it.  We  see  here  that  Professor  Ely  has  been 
doing  for  a  long  time  in  his  school  a  great  deal  of  most  excellent 
work,  which  has  been  hidden  there;  and  I  hope  that  he  will  give  it  to 
us.  We  publish  a  paper  at  our  institution,  and  I  am  glad  to  publish 
anything  that  we  do;  anything  that  is  going  on  at  our  school;  and  if 
our  institution  papers  did  that  more,  it  seems  to  me  that  they  would 
be  worth  a  great  deal  more  to  all  institutions.  I  think  that  the  pupils 
would  receive  great  benefit  from  having  this  printed  to  carry  around 
with  them. 

Mr.  McFarland:  I  like  that  suggestion.  I  think  that  we  all  of  us 
would  be  glad  to  subscribe  for  every  paper  in  the  country  for  the  sake 
of  the  information  we  would  get,  if  we  were  sure  of  finding  in  each 
of  them  some  department  devoted  especially  to  methods  of  teaching, 
or  some  similar  matter.  And  in  the  course  of  time  there  would  be 
gathered  an  immense  amount  of  practical  information  from  the  men 
who  are  doing  the  work  of  devising  methods  and  of  testing  them  all  of 
the  time,  which  would  be  of  exceedingly  great  help  to  all;  and  a  large 
number  of  teachers  and  pupils  would  subscribe  for  the  papers. 

A  Member:  For  how  many  classes  do  you  have  papers  of  this  class 
printed  in  your  school? 

Mr.  Ely:  For  four  or  five  older  classes.  They  are  printed  and  dis- 
tributed to  the  pupils.  These  lessons  do  not  take  the  place  of  text- 
books at  all,  but  are  simply  exercises  in  language. 

The  Chairman:  The  hour  having  expired,  the  language  section 
has  the  floor. 

Mr.  Weed:  The  next  topic  for  consideration  is  not  a  poetic  one,  but 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  127 

is  one  which  all  of  us  recognize  as  eminently  practical— "The  Correc- 
tion of  Mistakes." 

I  will  first  speak  of  the  correction  of  mistakes  by  avoiding  them. 
If  that  seems  to  be  an  Hibernianism,  I  am  reminded  of  the  boy  who 
said  that  pins  had  saved  a  great  many  lives.  When  asked  how,  he 
replied:  "By  not  swallowing  them." 

I  have  three  suggestions  under  the  head  of  "Avoidance."  One  is,  a 
limited  vocabulary,  which  we  considered  the  other  day,  and  which  I 
will  not  repeat. 

The  second  is  "  Past  Tense  "  in  the  first  year  and  possibly  the  second 
year,  which  has  been  considered,  and  which  I  will  not  repeat.  This 
implies  the  non-use  of  synonyms,  which  has  already  been  considered. 

And  the  third  and  last  point  is:  "To  conceal  from  the  eye,  as  much 
as  possible,  incorrect  forms."  For  years  it  was  my  practice  to  take 
mistakes  that  I  had  found  in  compositions  and  write  them  out  on  a 
large  slate  in  the  presence  of  the  class.  An  experienced  teacher 
finally  said  to  me:  "Do  you  not  see  how  every  time  you  do  that  you 
impress  that  mistake  upon  the  mind  of  the  pupil?"  I  saw  the  point 
at  once,  and  from  that  day  have  not  done  it.  We  should  be  as  care- 
ful to  conceal  from  the  eye  of  the  pupil,  so  far  as  we  can,  the  sight  of 
a  mistake,  as  we  should  to  keep  a  child  from  hearing  an  incorrect 
expression. 

Those  are  the  negative  answers.  Now  for  the  positive.  There  are 
four  methods  of  correcting  mistakes: 

First — By  a  teacher,  without  any  aid  on  the  part  of  the  pupil,  in  the 
correction  of  his  own  mistakes.  We  all  know  what  that  is:  to  sit 
down  by  the  side  of  the  pupil,  take  a  slate,  full  of  mistakes,  and  write 
the  correct  forms.  And  what  does  it  amount  to?  In  nine  cases  out 
of  ten  the  mistake  is  not  noticed  or  remembered  by  the  pupil,  and 
the  next  time  he  writes  a  composition,  the  same  mistake  is  repeated. 
I  wish  I  could  recall  the  months,  and  might  almost  say  the  years,  that 
I  have  spent  in  this  kind  of  work,  that  has  been  of  no  avail. 

Second — To  require  the  pupil  to  discover  and  correct  his  own  mis- 
takes. If  a  child  brings  to  me  a  slate,  with  a  composition  on  it,  I 
first  ask  him:  "Have  you  read  that  over  yourself?"  If  he  answers 
"  No,  sir,"  I  tell  him  to  go  back  to  his  seat,  and  read  it,  find  out  what 
mistakes  he  can,  and  correct  them,  and  then  bring  it  to  me. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  effect  of  this,  we  have,  in  our  school-room, 
a  morning  journal,  covering  one  of  these  slates.  Let  me  take  the 
exercises  of  one  boy,  for  one  morning,  one  of  the  poorest  scholars  in 
the  class,  who  had  on  his  slate,  for  his  morning  journal,  one  hundred 
and  twenty-nine  words.  In  looking  it  over,  I  found  that  he  had  three 
mistakes.  I  could  not  get  him  to  discover  them,  and  yet  I  was  satis- 
fied that  if  he  knew  what  and  where  they  were,  he  could  correct  them, 
and  on  my  pointing  to  the  three,  he  did  correct  them.  It  is  not  my 
custom  to  indicate  at  once  the  mistake.  I  ask  him  to  read  the  line  in 
which  the  mistake  occurs,  and  to  find  where  he  has  made  the  mis- 
take, either  in  the  tense  of  a  verb,  in  the  termination  of  a  noun,  in 
the  use  of  a  preposition,  or  anything  else. 

I  have  spoken  of  thirteen  pupils  whom  I  have  kept  together  dur- 
ing six  years;  and  what  I  am  saying  applies  to  those  thirteen,  and 
not  to  the  two  or  three  others  in  the  class.  At  another  point  I  will 
give  a  result  showing  the  benefit  of  this  method  of  correcting  mistakes. 

When  the  three  methods  I  have  spoken  of  fail,  I  use  the  fourth 
method — the  teacher  correcting  mistakes.     And  wherein  does  the 


128  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

fourth  differ  from  the  first?  Much  every  way.  In  the  second  and 
third  the  pupil's  knowledge  has  been  tested,  his  judgment  exercised, 
and  the  exact  measure  of  his  ignorance  has  been  determined,  and  he 
is  prepared  to  apprehend  his  own  difficulty.  The  effort  of  self  correc- 
tion has  stimulated  him,  and  he  has  a  nicer  discrimination  than  he 
would  have  had  without  it;  and  the  correction  is  more  fully  fixed,  and 
so  less  likely  to  recur. 

But,  after  all,  the  question  is  unanswered,  how  shall  the  teacher 
correct  mistakes?  One  portion  of  the  answer  is:  By  unclassified 
model  sentences  in  which  the  pupil's  mistakes  are  corrected,  which 
I  will  now  illustrate.  I  do  not  correct  the  mistake  directly.  I  will, 
for  illustration,  give  three  sentences  which  I  have  copied  from  slates, 
and  then  show  the  manner  of  correcting  them. 

It  may  be  very  ungracious  in  me  to  tell  tales  out  of  school,  and  to 
cast  any  reflection  upon  our  Principal;  but  1  am  not  responsible  for 
this  sentence.  Dr.  Gallaudet  had  entertained  our  pupils  very  much 
with  a  lecture  on  his  travels  in  Europe.  Mr.  Crouter  had  explained 
by  signs  what  Dr.  Gallaudet  had  said.  The  next  morning  one  of 
the  boys  wrote:  "Mr.  Crouter  interfered  while  Dr.  Gallaudet  was 
speaking."  The  mistake  there  is,  of  course,  the  word  "interfered." 
I  do  not  correct  that  sentence,  but  I  do  make  a  minute  of  the  word 
"interfered"  in  my  private  memorandum  book;  and  as  he  intended 
to  write  "interpreted"  I  also  make  an  entry  of  that. 

Example  No.  2  was  as  follows:  One  of  the  boys  wrote  "Elizabeth 
was  able  to  send  to  sea  twenty  thousand  fighting  men  on  a  board." 
What  he  should  have  said  was  "on  board  of." 

The  boy  who  has  made  these  mistakes  has  not  been  one  of  the  thir- 
teen who  have  had  the  advantage  of  a  uniform  course  during  the  last 
six  years.  In  fact,  he  has  been  in  school  three  years  longer  than  those 
thirteen,  and  has  more  words  and  phrases  than  any  other  boy  in  the 
class. 

Another  boy  who  has  been  unfortunate  has  given  us  this;  and  if 
Mr.  Crouter  is  at  all  offended  by  the  statement  that  he  interfered 
while  Dr.  Gallaudet  was  speaking,  he  may  derive  what  satisfaction 
he  can  from  the  positive  assurance  that  "Mr.  Crouter  ennobles  by 
principality  in  this  institution." 

Another  example:  "When  Cleveland  became  President  of  the 
United  States,  he  sent  missionaries  to  foreign  countries.  The  Rev. 
Mr.  Pendleton,  who  President  Cleveland  appointed  missionary,  was 
sent  to  Germany."  I  write  down  the  word  "missionary"  on  my  pri- 
vate list  without  the  knowledge  of  the  pupil.  I  also  write  in  my  pri- 
vate list  the  word  "minister."  Now,  I  have  here  the  words  of  which 
I  have  made  a  minute:  "interfered,"  "interpreted,"  "board  of,"  "mis- 
sionary," and  "  minister."  At  some  time,  perhaps  the  next  day,  when 
I  have  leisure,  I  compose  sentences  in  which  I  shall  use  these  words 
correctly.  I  will  read  a  few  sentences  in  which  I  have  used  these 
words  correctly.  I  want  to  correct  the  word  "  interfered,"  and  have 
the  distinction  made  between  "interfered"  and  "interpreted,"  so  I 
compose  the  sentences:  "Zeigler,  the  Prefect,  interfered  when  two 
boys  were  fighting."  "Mr.  Crouter  interpreted  when  Dr.  Gallaudet 
was  speaking."  "  When  Dr.  W.  started  for  Europe,  his  father  bid 
him  good-by  on  board  of  the  ship."  "Queen  Elizabeth  sent  twenty 
thousand  soldiers  to  sea  on  board  of  vessels  of  war." 

"  Paul  called  himself  a  minister  of  Jesus  Christ.     He  was  a  mission- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  129 

<iry,  and  preached  the  Gospel  in  the  synagogues  of  Thessalonica  and 

"Hon.  George  H.  Pendleton  was  appointed  Minister  of  the  United 
States  Government  to  Germany,  where  Bayard  Taylor  died  when  he 
was  a  United  States  Minister  there." 

I  copied  these  on  my  large  slate  in  the  presence  of  the  class,  and 
they  read  it  over.  I  do  not  require  them  to  commit  to  memory,  but, 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  they  do.  And,  when  they  have  become  familiar 
with  these  forms,  I  have  each  boy  copy  the  exercises  in  a  blank  book, 
which  is  kept  for  the  purpose.  Next  week,  some  time,  when  they  are 
not  anticipating  it  at  all,  I  give  those  sentences  by  signs,  and  they 
write  them  out  from  my  signs.  I  then  say,  "  Turn  to  page  fifty,  and 
compare  what  you  have  just  written  with  what  you  copied  into  your 
book  last  week."  And  if  there  is  any  difference  between  their  book 
and  their  slate,  they  indicate  it,  and  show  it  to  me.  It  is  possible  that 
they  have  written  the  sentence  correctly,  and,  if  so,  I  tell  them.  If 
they  have  made  a  mistake  I  then  tell  them  to  write  it  as  it  is  in  their 
book.  A  month  hence  I  repeat  this  same  exercise  of  giving  those, 
sentence  by  sentence,  and  have  them  write  them  on  their  slates,  and 
compare  them  again,  at  a  time  when  they  are  not  expecting  it. 

Now,  as  to  the  results  of  this  process.  They  are  two:  one  is,  almost 
entire  freedom  from  these  mistakes.  I  do  not  say  entire  freedom. 
But,  taking  a  class  of  thirteen,  and  supposing  that  these  sentences 
number  twenty,  we  would  have  two  hundred  and  sixty  sentences; 
and  supposing  those  sentences  have  an  average  of  twenty  words  each, 
we  then  have  fifty-two  hundred  words;  and  I  think  I  may  safely  say 
that,  at  the  end  of  six  months  after  that  exercise  was  given,  of  the 
fifty-two  hundred  words  there  would  not  be  an  average  of  three  mis- 
takes to  the  pupil. 

Second  result:  The  eye  is  trained  to  discover  mistakes.  Let  me  give 
one  or  two  illustrations  of  this  point.  A  boy  coming  directly  from  the 
table  one  morning,  wrote  the  following  on  his  slate,  and  brought  it  to 
me,  in  relation  to  a  text  he  had  heard  that  morning:  "  'He  was  des- 
pised and  rejected  of  me,'  etc.;  we  know  that  the  prophet,  Isaiah, 
lived  many  years  before  Christ  was  born.  Jesus  is  meant  by  'He'  in 
the  text.  Then,  how  could  Isaiah  write  the  word  'was'  in  the  text, 
when  Jesus  was  not  yet  born?  I  think  it  should  be  'will  be/  instead 
of  'was.'" 

At  another  time,  a  boy,  studying  a  Sabbath  school  lesson,  says, 
"  'James,  the  son  of  Alpheus,'  should  be  'a  son,'  because  James  had 
a  brother,  John;  he  was  not  the  only  son."  Within  five  minutes 
another  boy,  not  knowing  what  the  first  boy  had  done,  brought  me  the 
same  criticism. 

And  here  is  another  that  I  little  thought  I  should  have  occasion  to 
read  at  this  point  upon  this  coast,  when  last  winter  it  was  under  con- 
sideration. I  showed  a  boy  this  sentence,  and  I  wrote  it  just  as  it  was 
printed:  "Kernville,  California,  is  a  town  of  forty  houses  and  but  one 
inhabitant,  who  saw  the  mining  camp  at  its  rise,  its  glory,  and  its  fall. 
His  only  neighbors  are  those  over  the  hill,  in  the  cemetery."  With- 
out any  hint  from  me,  the  boy  wrote  the  comma  after  the  word 
"houses,"  and  omitted  it  after  the  word  " inhabitant,"  of  course  alter- 
ing the  entire  sentence,  and  making  it  read:  "Kernville,  California, 
is  a  town  of  forty  houses,  and  but  one  inhabitant  who  saw  the  mining 
camp  at  its  rise,  its  glory,  and  its  fall,"  etc.  He  was  not  quite  so  for- 
9d 


130  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

tunate  in  another  instance,  and  as  his  teacher  I  am  not  responsible 
for  the  sentiment  as  he  punctuated  it.  It  was  this:  "  Woman  without 
her  man,  is  a  savage."  I  told  him  to  read  it  over,  and  he,  in  a  mo- 
ment, put  the  comma  after  the  word  "  woman,"  and  after  the  word 
"her." 

There  is  another  class  of  exercises  that  we  shall  not  have  time  to 
consider  in  full,  but  which  is  of  very  great  interest  and  profit  to  pupils 
who  have  been  under  instruction  for  three  or  four  years.  It  requires 
them  to  think.  I  will  simply  read  one  of  the  exercises  and  some  of 
their  remarks  about  it. 

Without  any  notice,  I  will  put  a  sentence  of  this  kind  on  the  slate: 
"One  dark  night,  when  the  new  full  moon  was  shining,  but  no  stars 
could  be  seen,  a  deaf  and  dumb  boy,  with  an  unloaded  gun,  walking 
alone  in  the  woods,  heard  a  bird  singing,  which  he  shot,  and  gave  it 
to  his  companion." 

They  do  not  know,  when  they  commence  to  read  it,  but  what  it  is 
all  right.  They  soon  discover,  and  then  it  is  the  business  of  each  boy 
to  write  out  any  inconsistency  he  can  find,  and  they  are  required  to 
remember  them.  They  say:  "This  sentence  is  not  correct,  because, 
first,  if  the  new  moon  was  shining,  it  was  not  a  full  moon;  second, 
the  night  cannot  be  dark  while  the  moon  was  shining;  third,  the 
stars  always  shine  when  the  moon  is  shining;  fourth,  he  could  not 
hear  the  bird  singing,  because  he  was  deaf;  fifth,  the  boy  could  not 
shoot  the  bird  when  his  gun  was  unloaded."  One  boy  writes,  "  If  he 
shot  the  bird,  he  could  not  give  it  to  anybody,  because  he  was  alone 
in  the  woods."  Another  boy  says,  "  He  was  not  alone  in  the  woods, 
but  he  was  with  his  companion,  to  whom  he  gave  the  bird." 

There  are  other  exercises  of  this  kind  that  I  have  found  it  an  inter- 
esting exercise  for  them,  to  make  them  think.  For  instance:  "  Wis- 
mer  carried  an  empty  barrel  full  of  apples,  with  one  hand  on  his 
head,  and  the  other  in  his  pocket."  They  will  give  six  or  eight  reasons 
why  that  could  not  be. 

Another  example :  "  H.  and  K.  wrote  on  the  same  slate.  H.  wrote  on 
slate  No.  21,  and  K.  on  No.  22.  They  began  to  write  at  the  same  time. 
H.  began  at  nine  o'clock,  and  K.  at  ten  o'clock.  They  each  wrote  one 
hour  and  finished  at  the  same  time." 

"  A  blind  man  could  not  see,  because  he  lost  his  spectacles.  He 
looked  for  them,  but  could  not  find  them.  Then  he  put  them  on  his 
nose  and  read  three  pages  of  a  book,  without  turning  a  leaf." 

But  the  time  for  the  discussion  of  questions  pertaining  to  the  pri- 
mary and  intermediate  department  is  exhausted,  and  I  must  yield  to 
other  departments  of  equal  importance.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  The  hour  for  the  Natural  Science  Section  having 
arrived,  Mr.  F.  D.  Clark,  of  Arkansas,  will  conduct  the  exercises. 

Mr.  Clark:  I  had  taken  up  the  subject  of  botany,  but  since  I  have 
been  upon  this  examination  I  have  had  put  into  my  hands  a  paper 
by  Miss  Cornelia  M.  Ely,  prepared  while  she  was  a  teacher  at  Roches- 
ter, I  think.  I  was  asked  to  condense  that  paper,  but  it  is  so  very 
good  that  I  am  very  unwilling  to  leave  any  of  it  out  that  I  have  time 
to  read.  It  treats  of  the  natural  history  of  all  those  sciences  that  we 
usually  call  the  "ologies,"  in  common  speech. 

It  is  as  follows: 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  131 


CLASSES   IN   NATURAL   HISTORY,   IN   A   SCHOOL   FOR   THE   DEAF. 

"What's  it  good  for?"  said  one  boy,  somewhat  disdainfully,  when 
told  that  the  class  would  begin  the  study  of  natural  history.  "Shall 
we  study  natural  history  next  fall?"  said  the  same  boy,  eagerly,  at 
the  end  of  that  term.  "I  hope  so.  I  like  it  better  than  any  other 
study."  This  boy  was  one  who,  before  taking  up  the  study,  had  been 
less  observant,  less  fond  of  thinking  and  of  asking  why,  than  most  of 
the  others.  He  became  one  of  the  most  indefatigable  searchers  after 
specimens,  and  after  information  concerning  them.  The  whys  with 
which  he  continually  came  to  the  teacher  were  often  well  nigh  stag- 
gering. 

The  acquisition  of  English  is  of  the  first  importance  to  our  pupils; 
and  whatever  the  subject  studied,  this  thought  must  always  be  kept 
in  view.  And  in  the  language  exercises  which  we  give,  we  must 
place  the  information  gained  second  to  the  acquisition  of  idiomatic 
English.  We  do  not  forget  this  first  aim  when  we  take  up  the  study 
of  natural  history.  We  only  say  that  these  lessons  open  the  most 
lively  way  that  we  know  of  accomplishing  what  we  seek.  Before 
learning  to  use  language,  there  must  be  a  desire  to  use  it.  The  child 
must  have  thoughts  to  express,  must  be  eager  to  express  them.  What 
are  the  best  ways  to  awaken  the  child  mind?  "If  they  would  only 
think!"  What  shall  we  do  to  make  them  ask  questions?  But  to 
learn  to  ask  questions,  they  must  first  observe  something  which  inter- 
ests them ;  and  this  will  be  that  which  they  can  see,  or  can  see  and  feel, 
or  in  some  other  way  know  a  little  about.  We  must  proceed  from  the 
known  to  the  unknown,  always.  Here  we  find  the  first  value  of  the 
study  of  natural  history  for  our  pupils.  It  is  an  excellent  training 
and  developing  study,  beginning  with  young  children,  and  lays  a  solid 
foundation  for  knowledge  by  teaching  to  observe  closely.  It  is  object 
teaching,  and  the  objects  are  all  about  us,  and  of  endless  variety. 
"  Nothing  is  more  natural  than  natural  history,"  and  even  the  little 
child,  with  wide  open  eyes,  will  make  wonderful  discoveries.  Yes, 
with  wide  open  eyes,  for  though  so  many  of  the  wonders  are  always 
near  us,  we  may  go  through  all  our  days  and  know  not  that  they  are 
wonders,  unless  we  are  awakened  to  look  closely  and  see.  This  study 
stimulates  that  curiosity  which  all  children  have  in  some  degree, 
gives  it  food  and  satisfaction,  and  leads  it  in  the  right  way.  That 
child  of  three  years,  who  seized  the  cat,  pinched  it  all  over  (not  mali- 
ciously, but  curiously),  and  briefly  said  "Bones!"  in  a  tone  of  discov- 
ery, was  learning  to  observe,  and  had  made  a  discovery  in  natural 
history.  The  little  pupil  who,  having  had  a  lesson  that  morning 
about  honey,  came  running  from  her  play,  pulling  open  the  flower 
she  was  bringing  meanwhile,  and  eagerly  asking,  "  Where  is  the  hon- 
ey?" was  learning  to  ask  questions  and  beginning  to  find  lessons  in 
the  great  book  of  nature.  The  study  of  natural  history  inspires  and 
satisfies  a  desire  for  independent  work.  The  child's  mind  is  awak- 
ened to  look  and  to  wonder,  then  to  question  and  to  investigate.  He 
is  fascinated;  for  the  more  he  learns,  the  more  he  finds  to  learn  and 
the  better  able  he  is  to  learn;  and  the  pleasure  of  finding  out  for 
himself  gives  zest  to  his  work,  while  he  forgets  to  even  call  it  work. 
Being  led  a  little  way,  he  goes  still  further  by  himself,  finding  new 
wonders  without  help;  and  no  one  doubts  that  what  we  labor  for  we  . 
better  appreciate  than  that  which  comes  to  us  without  effort  of  our 


132  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

own.  That  this  study  is  desirable  and  important  for  our  pupils,  has 
been  proven  satisfactorily  to  me.  In  all  the  variety  of  ways  which 
we  have  for  teaching  language,  always  striving  to  make  the  study 
interesting  and  our  pupils  enthusiastic  in  learning,  there  are  certain 
difficulties  with  which  we  often  have  to  contend,  viz.:  To  induce  the 
pupil,  not  merely  to  memorize,  but  to  think;  not  simply  to  take 
unquestioningly  all  that  is  given  him,  but  to  seek  for  himself;  not 
always  to  be  ready  to  acquiesce  in  our  opinion,  but  sometimes  to  tell 
his  own.  Nowhere  can  we  find  more  interesting  nor  as  "live"  topics 
of  conversation  and  various  language  exercises  as  in  this  study.  The 
ways  employed  in  teaching  it  are  of  great  value  in  teaching  language. 
If  the  pupil  thinks,  he  will  not  only  take,  but  will  be  interested  to  find 
out  for  himself,  and  finding  out,  he  will  have  opinions  to  tell.  He 
will  want  to  talk,  for  he  has  continually  something  new  and  interest- 
ing, and  he  will  never  try  harder  to  express  his  thoughts,  nor  be  more 
glad  to  be  helped  to  a  correct  expression  of  them,  than  during  these 
lessons.  He  will  be  enthusiastic,  and  enthusiasm  is  a  great  help. 
No  books  are  needed,  and  this  is  a  point  in  favor  of  our  pupils,  who, 
in  these  conversational  lessons,  or  familiar  talks  and  object  teaching, 
gain  the  use  of  idiomatic  English  which  their  text-books  do  not  fur- 
nish, while  often  puzzling  them  greatly.  But  after  this,  the  study 
inspires  a  desire  to  read  for  the  express  purpose  of  gaining  informa- 
tion such  as  few  studies  awaken.  The  teacher  studies  with  the  pupils, 
using,  and  teaching  them  to  use,  books  of  reference,  and  must  never 
be  afraid  to  say,  "I  don't  know;  I  will  look  it  up."  For  to  teach  in 
this  way  demands  study  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  and  there  is  no 
stopping  place.  The  pupils  will  be  continually  searching  and  telling 
what  they  find  out,  and  will  ask  whenever  they  do  not  know,  and  the 
teacher  will  be  often  confronted  with  questions  as  to  the  how,  ivhy, 
where,  and  what,  which  cannot  always  be  answered  "  on  the  spot."  In 
every  way  the  pupils  are  encouraged  to  look  and  to  find  out  for  them- 
selves, and  are  told  only  so  much  as  will  enable  them  sufficiently  to 
do  this.  To  see  some  of  these  enthusiastic  young  naturalists  almost 
dragging  the  pond  for  specimens,  while  others  are  busily  poring  over 
books  to  find  out  about  the  butterflies  they  have  just  caught,  or  the 
crayfish,  or  the  bird  which  "looked  somewhat  like  a  goldfinch,"  while 
another  is  seen  to  triumphantly  deposit  in  the  small  aquarium  a  little 
fish  (sought  and  obtained  by  no  small  effort)  with  the  remark,  "  I  think 
it  is  a  pike;  I'll  find  out,"  is  very  gratifying  to  the  teacher,  if  some- 
what amusing  to  the  uninitiated.  Or,  if  plant  life  is  taking  our  atten- 
tion, to  discover,  as  you  walk  through  the  yard,  here,  a  boy  carefully 
examining  the  bark  of  a  certain  tree,  there,  another  boy  explaining 
to  a  third  the  way  in  which  the  leaf  buds  are  protected  through  the 
winter,  while  a  fourth  pupil  is  bending  over  a  tiny  plantlet  whose 
two  seed  leaves  have  just  opened,  and  a  fifth  is  on  the  way  to  plant 
something  new  in  our  box  of  "seedlings"  beside  the  corn  (which  has 
already  been  pulled  up  three  times,  and  its  state  and  manner  of 
growth  commented  upon)— all  of  this  is  also  gratifying. 

In  taking  up  the  study  of  natural  history,  in  any  of  its  branches, 
the  classification  best  adapted  to  our  needs  is  that  of  Miss  Coe,  of  the 
American  Kindergarten.  This  is  very  simple,  having  been  arranged 
with  special  reference  to  children.  This  classification  is  given  in  full 
in  the  American  Kindergarten  Magazine,  Vols.  II,  HI,  and  IV.  It  is 
learned  by  the  pupil  almost  unconsciously,  as  he  is  never  given  a 
name  of  any  division,  class,  or  species,  until  observation  and  talk 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  133 

have  shown  him  something  for  which  he  needs  a  name,  when  he  takes 
it  at  once  gladly,  because  it  expresses  his  thoughts,  and  he  does  not 
consider  whether  it  is  long  or  short. 

Permit  me  to  give  an  outline  of  my  plan  of  work,  and  of  just  what 
is  done  during  one  recitation  hour  in  the  class-room,  first  with  an  ad- 
vanced class  and  then  with  beginning  classes. 

Here  is  a  class  of  pupils  who  have  been  in  school  six  years,  having 
a  large  vocabulary,  and  using  English  fairly,  who,  of  course,  must 
have  language  exercise  aside  from  their  special  studies.    One  of  these 
hours  for  language  study  we  devote  to  natural  history.    Last  year  the 
class  began  the  study  in  learning  something  about  the  common  verte- 
brate animals.     This  year  because  the  pupils  have  asked  it  earnestly, 
they  have  been  allowed  to  study  something  about  invertebrates,  be- 
ginning with  insects.    Specimens  were  in  this  class  so  plentiful  and 
easy  to  secure  that  enthusiasm  soon  became  unbounded.     (In  fact, 
when  the  annual  picnic  was  talked  of  a  certain  place  was  especially 
recommended  by  many  of  these  pupils  because  there  were  many  insects 
there— hardly  a  recommendation  for  the  average  pleasure  seeker  in 
rural  scenes.)     A  lesson  to  be  committed  to  memory  is  never  given, 
nor  any  set  lesson  from  a  book.    The  recitation  hour  of  one  day  is 
devoted  to  examination  of  specimens,  to  draw  out  the  thoughts  and 
information  of  the  pupils  on  the  subject  in  hand,  and  to  increase 
their  desire  to  gain  more;  and  to  a  short  familiar  talk  by  the  teacher, 
who  is  careful  to  tell  only  what  the  pupil  cannot  find  out  for  him- 
self, and  to  put  into  concise  and  correct  form  what  has  already  been 
expressed,  more  or  less  clearly,  by  the.  pupils.     During  the  talk  ques- 
tions without  limit  are  allowable.     Directions  are  then  given  for 
reading  from  books  of  reference  upon  the  special  object  chosen  for 
study.    Sometimes  this  examination  and  general  conversation  fully 
occupy  the  hour,  so  that  the  teacher's  talk  is  omitted,  in  which  case 
it  is  given  the  next  day.     For  an  example  of  the  exercise,  take  a  first 
lesson  on  insects  (which  would  not  be  given  twice  in  precisely  the 
same  manner  to  two  different  classes).    Knowing  that  such  is  to  be  the 
lesson  for  this  morning,  and  wanting  to  begin,  the  pupils  come  in, 
some  bearing  mysterious  looking  boxes,  others  rolls  of  paper  in  which 
are  hidden  some  precious  specimen,  others  carefully  hiding  in  their 
hands  something  in  which  they  evidently  feel  much  interest.     What 
a  collection  !  a  housefly,  several  varieties  of  butterflies,  three  differ- 
ent moths,  a  grasshopper,  several  six-legged  creatures,  as  yet  nameless 
to  us  beyond  their  general  name  of  insect,  etc.      The  teacher  sits 
down  with  the  class,  and  the  conversation  begins,  perhaps  in  this  way: 
"What  have  you  found  out?"    Somebody  says,     Every  one  of  these 
insects  has  six  legs,  the  moth  the  same  as  the  fly  and  the  bee."    We 
all  look  and  prove  it  to  ourselves.     The  antennae  are  discovered,  and 
the  name  asked,  then  "What  are  they  for  ?"  say  several  pupils,  and 
others  "/think  for  smelling,"  "/  think  for  feeling,"  "/watched  the 
fly,  and  /  think  they  are  for  hearing,"  etc.     "  How  do  they  breathe  ?" 
says  some  one,  and  we  talk  about  that,  examining  a  May  beetle  in 
which  the  spiracles  are  easily  seen.    Then  the  eyes  are  talked  about, 
then  a  leading  question  brings  up  the  topic  of  their  early  life.    Some 
one  thinks  they  are  first  little  flies,  and  grow  and  grow  until  they  are 
just  like  the  mother.    Some  one  else  immediately  explains  that  he 
has  seen  the  eggs  of  a  certain  moth,  so  they  must  come  from  eggs,  and 
so  we  go  on  until  the  mystery  of  the  three  changes  in  the  life  of  an 
insect  has  been  explained,  and  with  every  new  discovery  there  is  a 


134  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

rise  in  the  tide  of  enthusiasm.  Many  differences  which  will  later 
classify  these  insects  more  particularly  are  noted  and  talked  of— as 
that  the  moths  have  long  tongues,  the  beetles  strong  jaws,  etc.  When 
we  have  spent  as  much  time  as  we  profitably  can  in  this  way,  the 
teacher  may  give  a  little  talk,  something  like  this  (using  the  sub- 
stance of  the  conversation  and  carefully  adding  what  is  needed):  We 
have  here  a  number  of  insects.  They  look  very  differently,  do  they 
not  ?  We  see  that  they  are  all  alike  in  some  things.  All  insects  have 
six  legs  and  two  antennae.  They  have  two  or  four  wings— never  any 
other  number.  Their  bodies  are  of  three  parts  (giving  the  names  of 
the  parts).  All  insects  change  three  times  in  life  (giving  a  clear  and 
simple  description  of  the  transformation  assisted  by  the  cocoons  in 
our  collection  and  the  caterpillar  provided  for  the  occasion).  They 
have  neither  lungs  nor  gills,  but  breathe  through  tiny  air-tubes  which 
run  through  their  bodies,  even  through  the  antennae  and  the  wings. 
They  generally  have  compound  eyes  (explain  this  clearly).  A  few 
insects  have  simple  eyes,  and  a  few  have  both,  simple  and  compound 
eyes.  Though  they  have  no  bones  they  have  muscles  (and  we  pause 
to  talk  about  what  enables  them  to  use  their  wings,  to  walk,  etc.). 
Then  the  teacher  goes  on  with  a  talk  about  the  destructiveness  of 
insects  in  the  larval  state,  etc.,  but  careful  not  to  particularize,  as 
the  pupils  will  find  out  for  themselves  in  the  study  of  such  specimens 
as  they  will  choose,  which  is  better  than  being  told.  Directions  are 
then  given  for  using  the  books  of  reference,  certain  ones  being  assigned 
to  particular  pupils  with  special  passages  marked  for  reading.  The 
work  of  the  class  now  is  to  take  the  subject-matter  of  the  talk,  their 
own  previous  knowledge  and  the  information  gained  by  examina- 
tion; to  add  to  these  by  reading,  and  then  to  write  a  summary  which 
is  brought  to  the  teacher  for  correction.  Each  pupil  is  provided  with 
a  note  book.  When  the  summaries  have  been  corrected  they  are 
copied  into  the  note  books  for  preservation.  Each  pupil  feels  a  great 
interest  in  his  note  book,  for  it  is  emphatically  his  own,  and  he 
appreciates  the  labor  expended  on  that  which  it  contains.  The  day 
after  the  talk,  the  papers  having  been  corrected,  they  are  returned  to 
the  pupils.  If  a  misstatement  has  been  made  it  is  read  before  the 
class  and  settled  there,  and  the  writer,  not  the  teacher,  must  correct. 
A  certain  part  of  one  paper  is  sometimes  taken  before  the  class  for 
correction  in  composition.  One  pupil  may  be  called  upon  to  tell  us 
anything  which  he  has  discovered  since  our  yesterday's  lesson  (and 
be  sure  more  than  one  will  have  something  to  say),  and  the  class 
is  dismissed.  Very  frequent  reviews  are  given  and  in  a  variety  of 
ways.  Sometimes  a  list  of  general  suggestions  is  written  on  the  board, 
and  all  the  pupils  answer  these  upon  paper,  their  answers  being  cor- 
rected by  the  teacher  and  the  papers  returned  next  day.  Sometimes 
one  pupil  writes  the  classification  upon  the  board,  while  another 
writes  the  meaning  of  the  terms  used,  some  of  the  others  write  about 
certain  specimens,  and  still  others  classify  these  specimens.  At  an- 
other time  the  teacher  asks  the  questions  and  the  class  answer  by 
spelling  or  orally.  Frequently  verses  from  the  Bible  relating  to  in- 
sects are  repeated,  and  little  poems  and  stories  told.  Often  these  are 
copied  into  the  note  books  with  the  original  articles. 

Compositions,  reviews,  exercises,  etc.,  showing  actual  work  of  pupils 
were  presented,  but  for  lack  of  time  were  not  read. 

Mr.  Clark:  I  will  ask  Professor  Weston  Jenkins  to  tell  us  how  he 
has  been  teaching  botany  in  his  institution  during  the  last  year. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  135 

Mr.  Jenkins:  I  have  hardly  done  anything  that  is  worthy  of  men- 
tion. One  of  our  teachers,  who  was  quite  interested  in  the  subject, 
took  it  up,  experimentally,  this  spring,  having  completed  certain  work 
laid  out  in  the  fall.  She  began  it  about  the  first  of  April,  showing  the 
germination  of  seeds,  each  pupil  being  furnished  with  the  necessary 
seeds  and  varieties  for  growing,  and  then,  an  interest  being  awakened!, 
as  the  buds,  leaves,  and  flowers  were  opening,  the  children  used  to 
gather  specimens,  and  the  formation  of  the  flowers  was  explained, 
and  the  leaves  and  seeds  of  trees  growing  upon  the  place  were 
gathered,  and  were  shown  to  the  teacher,  and  the  pupils  prepared 
very  neat  books,  with  collections  of  leaves  and  flowers  of  the  differ- 
ent plants  growing  upon  our  grounds,  the  leaves  of  the  maple,  and 
specimens  of  its  wood,  and  they  were  told  what  are  the  uses  of  the 
maple  tree,  of  the  oak,  the  birch,  white  pine,  and  hemlock.  They 
would  compare  these  different  woods,  consider  which  was  the  heaviest 
and  hardest,  and  which  the  more  easily  worked,  and  what  wood  was 
used  in  different  kinds  of  manufacture,  and  what  in  the  fitting  up  of 
buildings.  That  is  only  a  beginning.  But  I  feel  very  much  encour- 
aged to  enlarge  that  kind  of  teaching. 

I  have  also  done  something  in  the  way  of  teaching  chemistry  and 
physics;  not  with  apparatus  or  with  technical  names,  but  showing 
the  mechanical  and  chemical  properties  of,  for  example,  quicklime, 
alcohol,  and  so  forth;  vaporizing  and  condensing,  and  showing  absorp- 
tion and  chemical  union  of  lime  with  water,  and  so  forth.  But  it 
has  been  confined  strictly  to  objects  and  substances  which  are  used 
in  the  mechanic  arts.  I  think  that  this  work  that  is  described  in 
Miss  Ely's  paper  is  such  as  all  of  us  may  well  pattern  after. 

Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Gallaudet:  In  connection  with  Miss  Ely's 
paper,  I  desire  to  ask  whether,  in  the  examination  of  these  various 
objects  in  the  Rochester  institution,  the  pupils  are  furnished  with 
magnifying  glasses  or  with  microscopes. 

Mr.  Westervelt:  Yes,  sir;  with  microscopes  of  their  own.  The 
class  is  provided  with  small  microscopes  or  magnifying  glasses,  made 
by  an  optical  company  in  that  city,  a  small  glass  standard,  with  a  rod 
and  adjustment,  with  needles  for  fine  manipulation.  They  are  also 
provided  with  dissecting  instruments,  for  cutting  the  objects  they  are 
examining.  The  interest  of  this  class  was  very  great  in  natural  his- 
tory. It  is  a  part  of  our  regular  school  work,  and  develops  naturally 
from  the  studies  of  natural  history  in  the  kindergarten. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  have  been  very  much  interested  this  morning 
in  this  branch  of  science,  because  I  think  that  in  the  upper  classes  it 
is  one  of  the  best  methods  of  object  teaching,  to  gain  language  as  well 
as  for  the  knowledge  gained.  In  the  last  year  I  had  charge  of  the 
highest  class  in  chemistry.  I  began  by  teaching  how  to  clean  dif- 
ferent things.  I  showed  them  how  to  clean  glass,  wood,  and  metal; 
how  to  clean  their  own  hands  and  how  to  keep  them  clean,  and  how 
to  keep  articles  which  they  handled  clean  without  using  water,  which 
is  sometimes  very  disastrous  in  chemistry.  Then  I  began  to  show 
them  how  to  clean  liquids.  They  were  very  much  astonished  when 
I  first  told  them  that  I  was  going  to  clean  a  liquid;  that  means  to 
filter  it.  That  was  really  the  first  lesson  which  I  taught  in  chemis- 
try— taking  some  dirty  water  and  putting  it  in  a  funnel,  and  it  imme- 
diately came  through  the  funnel  and  out  at  the  other  end.  just  the 
same  as  when  I  put  it  in.  Then  I  took  some  sand  and  put  it  into 
the  funnel,  packed  it  tight,  and  poured  this  dirty  water  through  it, 


136  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

and  it  came  out  quite  clean,  which  surprised  them.  I  explained  that 
to  them,  and  then  I  took  some  cotton  and  put  it  into  the  filter,  poured 
some  more  dirty  water  through  that,  and  they  saw  that  it  came  out 
clean.  They  were  very  much  surprised.  Then  I  explained  that. 
And  I  said,  "  If  you  did  not  have  any  of  these  things,  what  would 
you  do?"  One  of  the  boys  said,  "Use  a  handkerchief,"  and  the  boy 
put  the  handkerchief  in,  and  it  cleaned  the  water;  showing  that 
sometimes,  if  they  were  in  a  tight  place  they  would  have  to  make  use 
of  their  ingenuity.  That  is  one  of  the  first  things  to  be  learned  in 
chemistry.    And  this  gives  an  idea  of  how  I  start  in  chemistry. 

Then,  after  they  had  learned  how  to  clean  different  things  I  asked 
them,  "Is  that  water  pure?"  They  did  not  know  what  I  meant,  and 
I  explained  it  by  taking  a  little  water  and  putting  a  little  salt  in  it, 
and  asking  them  to  drink  it.  They  did  not  like  it.  Then  I  filtered 
it,  and  then  they  said  it  would  be  all  right;  but  when  it  passed 
through  it  tasted  the  same.  I  asked  them  if  it  was  pure,  and  they 
said:  "No;  there  is  salt  in  it."  I  asked  them,  "How  are  you  going 
to  get  rid  of  the  salt?"  They  didn't  know.  So  I  told  them  to  put  it 
into  a  glass  retort  or  kettle— I  always  begin  with  home  objects— so  I 
took  an  ordinary  teakettle  and  put  that  salt  water  in,  and  put  it  on 
the  stove  in  the  kitchen,  and  boiled  it,  caught  some  steam  in  an  ordi- 
nary goblet,  and  got  about  two  teaspoonfuls  of  water.  They  tasted 
that  water,  and  it  tasted  no  more  salt.  Then  I  showed  them  the  sci- 
entific instrument  called  a  retort,  and  a  condenser,  and  showed  them 
how  to  distil  liquids.  Then  we  get  just  one  step  higher,  and  they 
find  out  how  to  purify  liquids. 

I  begin  at  the  very  bottom  and  work  up,  and  after  I  get  to  a  certain 
point  it  is  fair  sailing  afterwards.  But  if  you  do  not  begin  with  these 
simple  things  correctly  you  cannot  do  it. 

I  asked  a  boy  to  put  a  cork  in  a  bottle,  and  he  sai'd  it  was  too  large; 
that  he  could  not  do  it.  I  told  him  he  must,  and  he  went  to  work 
and  cut  it  the  wrong  way,  and  spoiled  the  cork.  I  had  to  show  him 
how  to  cut  that  cork— that  he  must  use  a  file  and  sand-paper.  All  of 
these  points  that  I  give  you  as  illustrations  are  used,  not  only  for  the 
benefit  of  the  knowledge  conveyed,  but  for  the  training  they  get.  I 
believe  I  have  taught  for  five  years  what  I  have  told  you  this  morn- 
ing. Then  I  begin  with  oxygen.  This  class  have  had  a  very  good 
idea  of  physics,  and  understand  what  attraction,  cohesion,  and  adhe- 
sion mean. 

I  do  not  believe,  at  all,  in  text-books  in  chemistry  for  children. 
Everything  should  be  taught  to  them  by  object  lessons.  I  believe 
they  should  have  no  text-books  whatever.  We  should  make  their 
text-books.  I  take  some  chloride  of  potash  and  ask  them  what  that 
is.  They  do  not  know.  I  ask  them  if  it  is  a  mineral  or  a  liquid.  They 
reply  "It  is  a  hard  substance;  I  guess  it  is  a  mineral."  I  ask  them 
to  put  it  into  a  retort,  and  they  do,  and  they  look  into  the  retort,  and 
there  is  something  black  left  there;  it  is  changed.  So  it  has  overcome 
its  cohesion.  Then  I  ask  them  what  it  is,  and  they  do  not  know,  and 
I  explain  to  them.  They  have  had  all  of  these  objects  described,, 
everything  that  they  use  has  been  described  to  them,  and  they  know 
the  name  of  it,  and  they  must  know  the  name  of  it,  because  1  make 
them  do  the  experiments.  I  make  them  find  out  what  is  the  result. 
A  good  deal  of  glassware  is  broken,  but  it  is  worth  it,  because  in 
manual  manipulation,  deaf  mutes,  I  think,  as  a  general  rule,  are 
clumsy  with  their  hands.     I  will  not  allow  them  to  handle  my  own 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DP;AF.  137 

microscope,  but  all  of  the  delicate  brass  instruments  I  make  them 
handle.  I  take  up  the  compound  of  hydrogen  and  oxygen,  water,  and 
then  I  ask  them  what  they  do  with  water,  and  what  it  is  used  for,  and 
how  they  get  water  pure,  and  so  forth.  Then  I  take  up  the  com- 
pound of  oxygen  and  nitrogen,  considering  nothing  that  is  outside  of 
everyday  life.     That  is  the  way  I  begin  chemistry.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Frank,  of  California:  I  desire  to  add  something  to  what  Mr. 
Clark  has  been  explaining,  in  the  study  of  natural  history.  I  have 
here,  in  envelopes,  sets  of  colored  pictures,  "  Prang's  Natural  History 
Series  for  Schools  and  Families."  I  think  there  are  a  dozen  in  a 
package,  showing  the  different  classes  of  birds  and  animals,  and  with 
each  one  of  these  sets  is  a  large  picture  of  one  of  the  species,  to  hang 
upon  the  wall.  These  are  in  little  pasteboard  holders,  for  convenient 
use  in  the  class-room.  They  are  designed  to  be  given  to  the  pupils  to 
handle  and  examine,  showing  the  nature  and  peculiarities  of  each 
class  of  the  species. 

Mr.  Clark:  I  will  say  a  few  words  about  how  I  think  botany  ought 
to  be  taught.  I  should  begin  the  study  of  botany  with  a  young  class 
by  putting  into  their  hands  a  certain  number  of  seeds  and  bulbs,  and 
telling  them  to  plant  them,  giving  them  quite  a  number,  so  that  every 
day,  possibly,  we  could  dig  some  of  them  up  to  see  the  changes  that 
had  occurred  in  those  seeds,  and  draw  their  attention,  perhaps,  to  the 
fact  that  some  seeds  begin  this  change  very  much  sooner  than  others. 
Then,  as  those  plants  grow,  I  should  call  their  attention  then  and 
there  to  the  difference  between  monocotyledonous  and  dicotyledon- 
ous plants.  That  word  is  a  pretty  long  word;  but  if  you  begin  with 
them  by  building  it  up  from  its  derivation,  they  will  get  hold  of  it. 
And  I  rather  think  deaf  mutes  like  long  words.  I  have  frequently 
had  them  stop  me  to  spell  out  a  word  of  thirty  or  forty  letters,  and 
then  make  the  sign  for  it. 

Mr.  Westervelt:   How  can  they  explain  it  without  a  sign  for  it? 

Mr.  Clark:  I  would  show  them  the  thing  itself  right  there,  and 
then  perhaps  I  might  hit  on  some  other  sign  for  it,  to  save  time  in  the 
class-room.  From  the  very  first,  I  would  start  with  these  pupils,  by 
developing  in  their  minds  an  idea  of  classification.  We  have  it,  more 
or  less,  but  the  deaf  child  does  not.  He  looks  upon  things  as  units. 
You  tell  him,  "That  is  an  oak  tree,"  and  it  is  a  longtime  before  he 
realizes  that  there  is  another  oak  tree  over  there  also,  even  though  it 
is  of  the  very  same  species.  And  when  you  get  a  different  species,  it 
confuses  him.  I  have  heard  deaf  mutes  say,  "This  tree  is  not  like 
that  tree;  the  leaves  are  different  in  size.  You  say  they  are  both  oak 
trees.  I  cannot  understand  it."  We  must,  from  the  very  start,  get 
them  to  classify.  And  I  should  follow  pretty  nearly  the  present 
accepted  classification  in  botany.  All  you  have  got  to  do  is  to  give 
them  the  names  for  those  things. 

Then,  next,  at  the  proper  time  of  the  year,  I  should  bring  flowers, 
for  the  classification  in  botany  depends  very  largely  upon  the  efflor- 
escence of  flowers.  I  should  bring  this,  particularly,  to  their  notice. 
I  would  teach  them  the  difference  between  the  stamens,  the  stigma, 
the  style,  the  ovary,  and  all  the  different  parts  of  a  flower,  and  show 
them  how  these  things  change  their  forms;  that  while  this  flower  has 
a  style  and  stigma,  that  is  very  different  from  this  other  flower,  still 
there  is  a  general  family  likeness,  so  that  a  person  who  has  examined 
a  few  will  never,  under  any  circumstances,  confuse  the  style  with  the 
stigma,  or  the  ovary  of  the  flower. 


138         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Then,  when  you  have  taught  them  that,  you  have  taught  them  the 
first  step  in  the  analysis  of  the  flowers.  Then  in  the  very  first  flowers, 
draw  their  attention  to  the  fact  that  in  botanizing,  they  should  keep 
away  from  garden  flowers,  mostly.  A  child,  in  its  own  attempts  at 
botanizing,  will  pick  up  one  of  our  garden  flowers,  where  the  stamens 
and  style  have  all  been  changed  to  petals,  and  they  are  greatly  con- 
fused by  it.  In  the  domestication  of,  or  what  we  call  "improving" 
flowers,  changes  are  caused  which  are  very  puzzling  to  the  young  bot- 
anist, In  studying  botany  for  myself,  before  I  went  to  college,  I  was 
hopelessly  confused,  from  the  fact  that  I  went  out  into  the  garden 
and  picked  one  of  the  double  flowers  that  gardeners  think  so  much 
more  beautiful  than  our  other  flowers,  and  I  could  not  see  anything 
that  the  book  said  ought  to  be  there.  With  that  one  hint,  you  can 
get  along  very  soon  to  a  point  where  the  class  of  deaf  mutes  will 
recognize,  not  the  species,  perhaps,  but  the  genus,  of  all  our  more 
common  wild  flowers. 

Next  to  this  I  should  take  the  ovary,  in  its  different  shapes,  on 
which  the  next  step  in  the  analysis  of  flowers  very  largely  depends. 
This  it  is  much  more  important  to  teach  than  the  difference  between 
monopetalous  and  polypetalous  flowers.  They  will  see  that  just  as 
soon  as  it  is  pointed  out  to  them.  And  after  this  I  have  found  Wood's 
Analytical  Tables  useful,  and  have  used  them  with  the  sixth  year  class 
without  any  particular  difficulty. 

Having  once  got  the  boy  or  girl  so  that  they  see  they  can  go  out 
into  the  fields  and  pick  any  flower,  and  come  back  to  their  book  and 
find  out  exactly  what  other  people  call  that  flower,  you  will  be  sur- 
prised to  see  the  enjoyment  they  will  take  in  it. 

Professor  Gray,  himself,  perhaps  our  most  noted  botanist  in  this 
country,  says  that  a  person  who  has  analyzed  three  hundred  flowers 
independently  is  entitled  to  the  name  of  botanist.  It  is  not  very 
much  of  a  work  to  do  this,  after  you  have  got  through  with  the  pre- 
liminaries. Take  my  high  class  boys,  and  they  would  do  it  in  a  year. 
Having  a  class  started  in  that  way  they  will  never  give  it  up. 

Mr.  Noyes:  What  standing  do  your  pupils  have  before  you  intro- 
duce botany  ? 

Mr.  Clark:  I  never  teach  it  under  six  years;  but  I  think  I  could 
teach  it  to  a  class  beginning  their  fourth  year.  I  never  did  teach  a 
young  class  but  one  year  in  my  life;  since  then  I  have  always  worked 
above  the  fifth  or  sixth  year. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Do  you  recommend  the  use  of  some  text-books? 

Mr.  Clark:  There  are  several,  but  I  should  not  like  to  recommend 
any  particular  one.  I  never  use  a  text-book  myself.  The  teacher,  of 
course,  ought  to  be  familiar  with  the  subject,  and  with  those  I  have 
helped  to  some  extent  I  have  always  found  that  they  took  Wood's. 
The  successful  use  of  Gray's  Tables  depends  upon  a  knowledge  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  seeds  very  much,  and  Wood's  do  not  so  much. 
The  peculiarities  of  the  seed  seem  to  be  very  confusing  to  young  peo- 
ple, and  they  do  not  often  have  the  seed  when  they  get  the  flower; 
they  have  to  wait,  or  make  a  microscopic  examination,  and  it  is  often 
very  troublesome  to  get  at. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  am  very  happy  to  say  that  this  is  a  very  proper  sub- 
ject, in  my  view,  to  come  before  us.  I  think  it  is  not  the  practice  of 
many  schools  for  the  deaf  to  take  up  the  subject  of  botany.  When  I 
was  a  boy,  in  the  academy,  under  William  H.  Wells,  the  author  of 
Wells'  Grammar,  he  desired  me  to  study  botany.     I  objected  seriously, 


OF   AMERICAN  INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  139 

and  told  him  I  thought  that  would  be  very  well  for  little  girls  who 
wanted  to  study  flowers  and  paint  pictures,  and  so  forth,  but  for  a 
man  that  was  going  to  be  a  business  man,  I  did  not  think  it  was  the 
proper  thing.  He  urged  me,  very  strongly,  to  join  the  class,  and 
said  that  after  a  given  time  if  I  was  still  of  the  same  mind,  he  would 
excuse  me  from  the  study.  I  accepted  his  proposition,  and  com- 
menced it,  and  I  have  ever  since  been  very  grateful  to  him  for  urging 
me  to  take  up  botany,  against  my  wish.  I  was  quite  stubborn  about 
it.  In  my  first  trip  to  California,  there  is  nothing  that  has  interested 
me  more  than  to  look  out  of  the  car  windows  to  watch  the  trees,  with 
their  different  forms,  different  shaped  leaves,  and  different  character 
of  bark,  and  the  color  of  flowers,  and  to  remark— so  far  as  I  could 
determine  it,  what  the  several  trees  and  plants  were.  It  has  been, 
from  year  to  year,  a  source  of  perpetual  joy  to  me.  And  I  know  that 
those  children  who  use  their  eyes  as  the  deaf  do  would  derive  great 
benefit  from  a  short  period  of  such  study.  I  do  not  think  it  is  best  to 
protract  it.  I  think  we  have  been  accustomed,  heretofore,  to  giving 
more  time  to  the  study  of  geography  than  properly  belongs  to  it.  The 
course  and  location  of  every  little  river  is  a  matter  of  small  account. 
If  you  have  an  idea  of  the  general  system  of  streams,  mountains,  and 
leading  points  of  a  country,  that  is  about  all  that  ordinary  men  need. 
And  a  portion  of  the  time  that  is  usually  given  to  the  study  of  the 
capitals  and  cities  and  towns,  and  the  peculiar  productions  of  a  State 
or  portions  of  a  State,  is  a  matter  that  can  be  studied  up  at  some  other 
time.  Instead  of  giving  so  much  time  to  geography,  give  a  portion  of 
it  to  botany,  and  open  up  some  of  this  richness,  this  vastness,  and  this 
great  variety  that  is  to  be  found  in  the  study  of  botany. 

Mr.  Westervelt:  We  have  used  Gray's  "How  Plants  Grow,"  very 
satisfactorily,  for  our  text-book,  though  of  course  we  have  relied  upon 
the  teacher  as  the  text-book  for  botany.  And  the  work  that  the  chil- 
dren have  done  out  of  school  is  more  important  than  the  study  of  the 
text-book,  although,  of  course,  both  are  necessary.  We  find  that  Gray's 
text-book  is  simple,  easily  understood,  and  very  satisfactory. 

Mr.  Weston  Jenkins:  That  book  gives  a  classification  which  is 
only  a  skeleton.  I  think  that  what  makes  the  study  of  botany  inter- 
esting is,  the  uses  of  the  plants,  how  they  grow,  and  what  they  are 
good  for  after  they  have  grown,  and  that  text-book  does  not  give  it. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Dr.  Hooker's  "  Book  of  Nature"  is  a  very  excellent  one, 
and  the  language  is  excellent  for  our  ordinary  deaf  mutes. 

The  Chairman:  The  following  question  I  take  from  the  question 
box:  "  What  is  the  best  method  of  conducting  examinations?"  I  will 
call  upon  Mr.  Crouter  to  reply  to  that  question. 

Mr.  Crouter:  It  is  difficult  to  say  which  is  the  best  method.  I 
think  our  methods  are  pretty  good  ones,  and  I  will  give  them  in  detail. 
The  questions  for  examination  are  all  prepared  by  myself.  I  do  it 
after  consulting  with  the  teachers  as  to  the  ground  that  their  pupils 
have  been  over.  They  do  not  give  me  questions,  or  sets  of  questions,  to 
ask  the  pupils  in  examination  at  all.  I  prepare  the  questions,  endeav- 
oring to  find  out  in  an  independent  way,  the  amount  of  knowledge 
that  the  pupils  have  of  the  work  that  they  have  been  over.  I  do  this 
in  language,  in  arithmetic,  and  in  all  branches  of  study.  I  try  to  ask 
questions  in  a  way  that  will  show  just  how  far  the  pupils  have  been 
grounded  in  the  work  that  they  have  been  over.  It  is  a  very  easy 
matter  to  make  an  examination  a  mere  showing  of  memory.  The 
pupils  may  go  over  a  certain  amount  of  arithmetic  or  geography,  and 


140  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION       • 

a  certain  number  of  exercises  in  language;  and  an  examination  that 
merely  calls  out  how  much  of  that  work  they  remember,  is,  to  me,  no 
examination  at  all. 

Mr.  Dudley:  Do  you  pay  any  attention  to  the  language?  For 
instance,  in  an  examination  in  geography,  if  the  answers  are  all  cor- 
rect, if  the  langauge  in  which  they  are  expressed  is  not  perfect,  what 
would  you  mark  them? 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  have  thought  that  in  an  examination  of  geography, 
or  any  other  branch  of  knowledge,  the  facts  only  should  be  taken 
into  consideration;  but  my  experience  has  shown  that  that  was  a 
very  poor  plan,  and  the  children  are  now  marked  for  language  in 
every  branch,  as  well  as  for  knowledge  in  that  branch. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Do  you  aim  to  make  your  questions  topical? 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  some  instances.  I  first  indicate  a  number  of 
actions  that  the  teacher  conducting  the  examination  must  perform  in 
the  presence  of  the  class.  Then  there  is  sentence  writing,  and  then 
there  is  descriptive  writing.  I  do  not  have  much  story  writing  in  our 
examinations.  It  is  impossible  for  the  teacher  to  tell  a  story  in  signs 
that  does  not  indicate,  to  a  greater  or  less  extent,  the  language  to  be 
used,  and  it  is  merely  putting  down  what  the  teacher  has  said  in 
signs.  We  give  them  topics  to  write  about  that  call  forth  a  better 
knowledge  of  language  than  telling  a  story  would. 

Mr.  M.  T.  Gass:  In  examining  a  child  in  geography,  why  are  his 
defects  in  language  charged  to  his  geography? 

Mr.  Crouter  :  Because  we  found  that  otherwise  the  pupil  was  likely 
to  be  careless  in  his  use  of  language  in  such  answers. 

A  Member:  How  many  examinations  do  you  conduct  in  a  year? 

Mr.  Crouter:  Two;  one  on  the  first  of  February  and  the  other 
towards  the  last  of  June. 

Mr.  A.  S.  Clark:  Suppose  that  in  your  examination  papers  you 
came  to  an  answer  in  which  the  pupil  had  written,  word  for  word 
and  comma  for  comma,  the  language  of  the  text-book,  or,  as  I  believe 
you  use  no  text-book,  the  language  given  him  by  his  teacher,  and 
another  one  who,  evidently,  is  writing,  not  from  a  crammed  lesson, 
in  that  way,  but  from  a  real  appreciation  of  the  subject,  which  he 
has  made  his  own,  is  putting  it  in  his  own  language,  which  is  more 
or  less  defective,  how  do  you  compare  those  two? 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  preparing  an  examination  I  endeavor  to  put  the 
questions  in  such  a  way  that  they  would  find  it  difficult  to  introduce 
the  language  of  any  lesson  in  their  work.  However,  in  the  examina- 
tion in  language,  we  have  a  method  which  we  think  obviates  that 
difficulty  to  a  considerable  degree,  and  we  do  it  in  this  way:  In  an 
exercise  in  language— for  instance,  it  might  be  a  description  of  this 
room,  or  of  some  object  in  natural  history — the  teacher,  in  marking, 
reads  it  over,  and  in  accordance  with  his  judgment  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  work  has  been  done,  he  gives  the  child  a  certain  credit 
mark,  one  hundred  being  perfect.  If  he  thinks  he  has  done  very 
well,  he  might  give  seventy-five.  The  next  step  is  to  go  over,  very 
carefully,  and  correct  every  error  in  that  work,  and  the  errors  are 
subtracted  from  one  hundred.  The  two  are  then  added  and  divided 
by  two  for  the  result  in  that  particular  part  of  the  language  exercise 
or  language  examination.  So,  while  one  pupil  might  write  but  little, 
and  write  more  correctly,  and  another  pupil  might  write  a  great  deal, 
their  work  is  balanced  up  by  the  judgment  of  the  teacher  in  giving 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  141 

them  a  certain  credit  for  style  and  for  the  general  manner  in  which 
they  have  done  their  work,  taking  their  other  mistakes  out. 

Mrss  Wright:  If  you  have  a  pupil  that  is  very  proficient  in  arith- 
metic and  to  whom  it  is  almost  impossible  to  teach  language,  and  you 
come  to  fractions,  and  you  give  him  examples  and  he  performs  the 
operation  correctly  and  gives  the  analysis  so  that  you  are  satisfied  that 
he  understands  the  arithmetic  of  the  example  but  does  not  use  perfect 
English,  what  would  you  take  off  for  that  ?  When  he  is  perfect  in 
everything  except  a  deaf  muteism  in  the  language  ? 

Mr.  Crouter:  We  give  a  certain  credit  for  arithmetic,  and  then 
whatever  errors  of  language  they  make,  maybe  ten  or  twenty,  they 
are  deducted  from  their  marks  in  arithmetic.  The  pupils  understand 
that  and  it  makes  them  more  careful.  Before  we  adopted  this  plan 
there  was  a  great  carelessness  in  the  use  of  language  in  the  examina- 
tions in  geography  and  other  studies,  and  hence  this  marking  in 
language  in  every  branch. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Do  you  prepare  all  the  questions? 

Mr.  Crouter:  Yes,  sir.  The  teacher  who  conducts  the  examina- 
tion does  the  marking,  but  no  teacher  examines  his  or  her  own  class, 
and  no  teacher  examines  a  class  of  the  same  standing  as  his  or  her 
class. 

Mr.  Noyes:  What  is  the  object  of  these  examinations  ? 

Mr.  Crouter:  To  encourage  the  pupils,  for  one  thing,  and  we 
grade  our  classes  by  them  to  a  large  extent. 

Mr.  A.  Pratt,  of  Ohio:  Instead  of  having  one  person  to  examine 
the  papers  and  mark  each  class,  it  might  be  well  to  have  the  teacher 
of  the  class  and  two  others,  and  in  this  way  a  more  correct  and  just 
marking  might  be  secured. 

Mr.  Ely:  In  our  school  each  class  is  examined  by  a  committee  of 
three,  the  Principal  being  one.  The  teacher  of  the  class  has  nothing 
to  do  with  it,  except  to  indicate  how  far  the  class  has  gone  during  the 
year  or  half  year  under  review.  In  our  examinations  in  history  and 
geography  we  do  not  discount  for  defects  in  language,  provided  the 
statement  is  full  and  accurate.  Any  inaccuracies  of  statement  are 
deducted,  and  the  misspelling  of  proper  names  is  also  deducted,  but 
beyond  that  there  is  no  account  taken  of  the  language,  provided  the 
statement  is  accurate  and  full. 

Mr.  Pratt:  We  all  have  a  class  of  pupils  in  our  schools  who  are 
unable  to  go  over  the  ground  allotted  to  any  grade.  What  do  you  do 
with  that  class  of  pupils  ?  Do  you  let  them  go  on  with  the  higher 
grade  ? 

Mr.  Crouter:  No,  sir;  we  keep  them  in  the  grade  where  they 
ought  to  be,  regardless  of  the  time  they  have  been  at  school  and 
regardless  of  examination  or  anything  else.  Our  higher  classes  are 
composed  of  pupils  who  ought  to  be  in  them  and  no  others.  In  my 
experience,  it  is  impossible  to  secure  perfect  grading.  You  may  start 
out  in  the  beginning  of  the  year  with  a  class  well  graded,  and  before 
you  have  been  at  work  three  months  you  will  find  that  you  ought  to 
regrade.  We  cannot  spend  all  our  time  in  regrading  and  we  do  it 
only  once  or  twice  a  year. 

Mr.  Tate:  Do  you  find  any  difficulty  in  advancing  those  pupils,  in 
order  to  keep  the  lower  classes  from  being  too  full? 

Mr.  Crouter:  No  serious  difficulty.  Our  classes  average  about 
fifteen. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  from  the  box  is,  "Will  some 


142  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

one  explain  how  to  teach  the  time  of  day?"     I  will  call  upon  Miss 
Wright. 

Miss  Phebe  Wright:  I  can  give  my  method.  I  generally  try  to 
have  a  clock  that  the  children  can  handle.  I  think  that  deaf  mutes 
like  to  handle  things.  Then  I  put  upon  the  board  a  diagram  of  a  clock, 
and  write  the  figures  of  the  clock.  I  take  the  minutes  and  make  them 
the  same  as  on  the  clock,  and  write  over  that  "  Minutes,"  and  take  the 
space  of  an  hour,  and  write  over  that  "Hours;"  so  they  can  see  that 
there  is  a  short  hand  and  a  long  hand,  and  that  the  short  hand  indi- 
cates hours  and  the  long  hand  minutes.  I  like  to  have  a  clock  that 
goes,  in  my  school-room,  but  I  do  not  generally  have  one.  I  begin 
with  twelve  o'clock,  and  teach  them  that  when  the  two  hands  come 
together,  that  is  twelve  o'clock;  and  I  have  every  one  write  what  time 
it  is — "Twelve  o'clock."  I  keep  at  that  for  a  little  while,  until  they 
understand  it.  Then,  from  there  I  move  it  to  five  minutes  after 
twelve — moving  the  large  hand,  and  the  small  hand  a  very  little, 
showing  that  that  does  move.  And  I  keep  on  in  this  way  until  I  get 
to  half-past.  I  go  over  that  several  times  before  I  take  the  half-past. 
Then  I  write  upon  this  diagram,  as  the  hand  goes  around,  "after"  or 
"past"— using  only  one  of  those  words,  generally  "past."  Then,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  diagram  I  write  the  word  "to,"  so  that  when  the 
large  hand  comes  round  it  is  after  the  time,  and  they  see  it  there.  I 
keep  drilling  in  that  way  for  weeks.  Then  I  rub  out  the  diagram, 
and  take  a  clock;  or,  if  I  have  my  watch  where  they  can  all  see  it,  I 
stop  it  suddenly  and  ask  them  what  time  it  is;  and  one  pupil  reads 
the  time;  and  if  he  mistakes,  I  give  the  watch  to  another  boy,  and  he 
reads  the  time;  and  if  they  all  make  a  mistake,  I  read  it  myself.  But 
I  find  very  little  trouble  in  that  way.  In  the  course  of  three  or  four 
months  the  majority  of  my  class  learn  to  read  the  time  correctly; 
and  I  have  them  write  sentences  on  the  board  in  which  the  time  is 
expressed.  I  put  the  clock  at  twenty  minutes  after  one,  and  ask  a 
boy  what  time  it  is,  and  make  him  count  with  his  fingers  "twenty." 
At  first  I  do  not  make  them  say  anything  between  five  and  ten  min- 
utes, but  after  awhile  I  have  them  give  the  exact  number  of  minutes. 

Mr.  Orouter:  I  think  every  school-room  ought  to  have  a  clock, 
and  a  good  large  one.  But  I  have  found  it  convenient,  in  teaching 
this,  to  use  one  of  the  little  cards  used  in  offices,  saying  "  Will  return 
at."  They  have  hands  upon  them,  and  you  can  move  them  to  any 
time  of  day.  They  are  very  useful  in  teaching  the  time  of  day,  and 
just  as  soon  as  they  learn  the  use  of  it,  I  refer  them  to  the  clock. 

Mr.  Conner:  I  have  found  it  convenient  to  use  a  toy  watch  for  the 
same  purpose.  .  I  think  it  is  also  well  to  teach  railroad  time— 8:30, 
8:40,  and  so  forth — so  that  they  can  understand  it,  taking  it  from  rail- 
road time-tables,  that  the  hour  is  first  stated  and  then  the  minutes. 

Miss  Sue  Ellis:  I  think  there  is  a  good  opportunity  right  there  to 
bring  in  a  little  language.  A  great  many  of  my  pupils  write  it  as 
"8V  using  the  fraction.  Then  I  say  to  them,  "You  have  made  a 
mistake;  you  ought  not  to  use  the  figures  '8?,'  but  you  should  say  'It 
is  half -past  eight.' "  I  find  that  has  been  of  great  use,  and  I  have  had 
a  good  deal  of  trouble  and  hard  work  in  breaking  them  of  that  habit. 

Professor  Moses  :  In  teaching  young  children,  I  begin  with  "twelve 
o'clock,"  and  then  teach  them  hours,  not  considering  the  minutes  at 
all,  so  that  they  can  readily  recognize  the  hours.  Then  I  teach  them 
the  difference  between  "a.  m."  and  "p.  m.,"  and  then  begin  with  the 
minutes.    I  take  the  quarters  and  then  the  half,  and  then  the  minute 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE  DEAF.  143 

"5,"  "10,"  "15,"  "20,"  and  so  on.  But  I  think  you  can  obviate  the 
trouble  of  the  confusion  of  the  short  and  the  long  hand,  by  simply 
indicating  the  difference  until  they  can  readily  tell  the  exact  hour  of 
the  day.  Then  make  the  distinction  between  "  a.  m."  and  "  p.  if.,"  and 
then  take  the  fraction.  I  think  you  should  teach  them  but  one  thing 
at  a  time.     Otherwise  they  get  confused. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  is:  "  How  to  break  up  the  habit 
of  talking  among  the  pupils  in  school,  and  how  best  to  control  hard 
cases— suppose  the  teacher  a  lady— and  how  punish  great  offenses."  I 
will  call  upon  Miss  Dutch  to  respond. 

Miss  Dutch:  I  think  that  it  depends  altogether  upon  the  age  of  the 
class.  There  are  a  great  many  different  ways,  and  I  could  not  say 
which  is  the  best  way,  but  can  give  you  my  method.  I  think  the 
great  secret  is  to  keep  them  interested  and  busy.  Of  course  there  are 
some  that  will  leave  their  work  and  talk.  In  my  own  class  I  have  a 
programme  upon  my  slate  for  each  day's  work.  I  say,  "  First  we  will  do 
such  a  thing;  then,  "second,"  and  so  on.  "  When  you  get  through  if 
you  have  no  si  ate  or  anything  to  work  on,  or  anything  to  do,  pick  up 
something  and  read  it,  and  after  awhile  I  will  ask  you  to  tell  me 
what  you  have  read."  In  that  way  some  of  them  have  been  helped  a 
great  deal,  and  do  not  have  time  for  talking. 

Sometimes,  though,  I  have  had  pupils  who  would  leave  their  slates 
and  books,  and  talk  anyway.  I  have  used  various  methods;  have 
studied  the  dispositions  of  such  children,  a  good  deal,  and  I  have 
sometimes  stopped  everything  I  was  doing,  called  the  boy  up  who  was 
talking,  and  had  him  stand  in  front  of  the  others,  and  have  all  of  the 
children  stop  and  look  at  him  while  I  made  him  talk  until  he  got 
sick  of  it.  When  he  would  stop,  I  would  say,  "  No,  keep  on,  you  want 
to  talk,  and  now  we  will  only  attend  to  one  thing  at  a  time,  and  you 
talk,  and  we  will  pay  attention  to  you."  I  have  sometimes  kept  them 
from  their  play  and  stood  them  in  a  corner  and  put  them  to  do  some 
disagreeable  tasks.  And  then  we  have  our  reports,  and  we  can  shame 
some  of  them  by  giving  low  marks,  but  with  others  that  has  no  effect. 
1  have  many  times  come  to  a  point  where  I  thought  I  would  like  some 
information  on  how  to  control  hard  cases,  myself.  But  I  believe  the 
best  way  I  have  found  is,  when  you  have  unusually  hard  cases,  such 
as  we  all  sometimes  have,  to  deprive  them  of  some  pleasure  they  are 
fond  of.  Last  year  I  had  one  or  two  boys  who  belonged  to  a  base  ball 
club,  and  who  were  very  fine  players  and  very  necessary  to  the  club. 
They  were  to  have  a  match  game  upon  a  certain  Saturday,  and  I 
know  of  two  boys  that  didn't  go  to  that  match  game.  I  found  that 
worked  very  well. 

Then  another  thing  that  we  used  very  effectually,  for  awhile,  cer- 
tainly, was  when  our  new  gymnasium  was  opened,  they  were  all  very 
eager  to  go  into  it,  and  those  who  were  disobedient,  or  who  had  com- 
mitted any  offense  in  school,  were  reported,  and  kept  from  the  gym- 
nasium. 

That  had  a  good  effect.  I  once  had  a  boy  in  my  school  who  would 
make  faces.  I  would  call  him  up  and  have  him  make  some  faces  for 
our  amusement. 

Mr.  Good  all,  of  California:  I  would  like  to  give  my  experience 
with  one  boy  whom  I  practiced  on  for  nearly  two  years  before  I  could 
keep  him  still,  and  when  I  found  out  how  to  stop  it,  I  did  it  in  about 
five  minutes.  I  had  scolded  him,  marked  him  low,  reported  him  to 
the  Principal,  and  he  was  kept  from  going  anywhere  on  Saturdays, 


144         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

and  still  his  Irish  wit  and  fun  would  come  out.  For  instance,  one 
day  Professor  Wilkinson  asked  how  many  boys  there  were  in  that 
building,  and  he  immediately  replied,  "Seventy-five  and  three  quar- 
ters." The  Professor  asked  him  how  could  there  be  three  quarters  of 
a  boy,  and  he  replied,  "  There  is  a  boy  with  a  leg  off."  He  would 
trouble  me  beyond  all  expression.  I  do  not  allow  any  talking  what- 
ever in  my  class.  But  although  he  did  not  disobey  me  in  that  way, 
he  could  make  everybody  else  laugh  with  some  movement  or  some 
wink,  or  by  some  means.  At  last  I  stopped  short  with  him;  I  disre- 
garded him  entirely,  only  I  didn't  allow  him  to  talk.  I  left  him  for 
two  days  without  calling  upon  him  for  any  lesson,  and  without  look- 
ing at  him.  He  attempted  to  talk  to  me,  but  I  could  not  see  him. 
He  finally  wrote  me,  all  of  which  I  disregarded  until  I  had  accom- 
plished my  purpose.  Finally  he  came  to  me  while  I  was  at  the  slate, 
and  asked  me  why  I  would  not  answer  him.  I  told  him  that  I  was 
here  to  instruct  and  to  help  good  boys;  that  I  had  nothing  to  do  with 
bad  boys.  After  an  hour  or  two  he  piteously  asked  me  to  help  him 
with  some  example.  I  commenced  by  being  pretty  stern  with  him — 
answering  him  shortly — until  the  time  arrived  when  I  told  him  that 
1  was  not  offended  with  him;  that  I  desired  to  see  his  improvement 
as  much  as  that  of  any  boy  in  the  class,  and  would  devote  my  time 
to  him  as  readily  as  to  any  one  when  he  treated  me  as  the  others 
treated  me;  hereafter  if  he  desired  to  get  on  in  school  he  should 
behave  himself,  and  that  every  time  he  offended  that  he  should  lose 
one  day  in  school;  that  for  that  one  day  I  would  leave  him  entirely. 
And  I  kept  that  up,  and  I  never  have  had  to  ignore  him  but  one  day 
since,  and  that  was  about  seven  months  ago,  and  he  has  been  one  of 
the  best  boys  in  my  class  since.     [Applause. ) 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  in  the  question  box  is  one  ad- 
dressed to  Professor  Booth:  "Do  you  use  analysis  for  problems  for  a 
full  understanding  of  the  combinations  of  symbols  given?" 

Mr.  Booth:  Yes,  sir;  to  be  sure  that  the  problems  are  understood. 
But  we  must  take  a  course  of  years  before  they  fully  understand  the 
symbols;  the  figures  or  operation  of  the  figures,  as  representing  pro- 
cesses with  numbers.  We  use  language  that  is  only  a  little  more  dif- 
ficult than  they  themselves  are  able  to  write,  and  they  make  progress 
by  their  necessities. 

The  great  danger  in  teaching  the  forms  of  analysis  is  that  they 
learn  them  merely  as  an  order  of  words — mechanically.  They  write 
the  analysis  to-day  simply  because  their  teacher  did  it  yesterday. 
They  memorize  the  analysis.  We  should  avoid  that.  I  should  say 
that  before  giving  these  forms  of  analysis  wait  until  the  seventh, 
eighth,  or  ninth  year.  My  experience  this  past  year  with  a  six-year 
class,  with  my  system  of  instruction  in  arithmetic,  in  using  these 
forms  of  analysis,  has  been  quite  satisfactory.  I  did  not  write  the 
form  of  analysis  upon  the  board  for  them  to  learn  fully,  but  I  simply 
performed  the  example  before  them,  and,  in  signs,  suggested  what  I 
wanted  them  to  express  in  language.  I  would  say,  If  a  horse,"  or 
"If  this  apple  is  worth  two  cents,"  and  so  forth;  and  in  that  way  I 
tried  to  give  them  an  idea  of  the  subjunctive  of  condition,  the  sub- 
junctive "if."  Then  I  say,  "Suppose  one  person,"  and  so  forth,  and 
they  go  on  and  analyze  it,  taking  my  supposition,  "  If  one  apple  is 
worth  two  cents,  five  apples  must  be  worth  five  times  as  much,"  and 
so  forth,  and  go  clear  through  to  the  conclusion  "  therefore,"  and  so 
forth.     I  give  that  in  signs,  and  they  had  very  little  difficulty  in  get- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  145 

ting  it.  The  next  day  I  gave  them  another  problem,  and  asked  them 
to  analyze  it  in  the  same  way  they  did  the  day  before,  and  some  of 
them  did  it.    The  next  day  again  nearly  all  of  them  did  it, 

So  I  say  that  they  have  very  little  difficulty  in  using  these  forms  of 
expression  when  they  have  the  idea  as  they  may  have  it  by  my 
method  of  teaching  arithmetic.  If  they  get  the  idea  clearly  in  mind 
of  numbers  and  the  relations  of  numbers  whicli  the  language  is 
intended  to  express,  they  have  very  little  difficulty  in  using  the  lan- 
guage to  express  those  ideas  which  they  have  clearly  in  mind.  First 
give  them  the  ideas,  and  then  the  language.  Do  not  give  them  the 
language  first,  and  let  them  think  that  from  the  language  they  may 
get  the  ideas.    It  is  contrary  to  nature. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  is:  "How  to  Teach  Relation- 
ship; that  is,  in  reference  to  its  use  in  letter  writing;  how  avoid  such 
mistakes  as  the  following:  A  letter  beginning  ' My  dear  sister,' and 
signed '  Your  affectionate  son'?" '  This  is  referred  to  Professor  Wester- 
velt. 

Mr.  Westervelt:  I  should  begin  when  the  child  first  comes  to 
school  to  teach  him  relationship.  It  is  easy  to  teach  very  small 
children  the  relations  they  hold  to  the  father  and  the  mother;  that 
the  boy  is  a  son  and  the  girl  a  daughter.  Where  they  make  such 
mistakes  in  a  letter  I  know  of  no  better  way  to  correct  them  than 
simply  to  point  them  out  to  them,  and  ask  them  if  they  are  correct. 
They  usually  know,  because  they  have  been  told  oftentimes.  Then 
let  them  make  the  corrections  themselves;  or,  if  they  are  not  able  to 
correct  them,  let  the  other  members  of  the  class  correct  them.  It  is 
true  that  such  mistakes  are  common;  but  they  are  only  the  result  of 
carelessness.  Hardly  any  peculiar  method  is  necessary  for  correcting 
those  errors,  any  more  than  any  others. 

Mr.  Pratt:  I  believe  one  of  the  causes  of  these  mistakes  in  letter 
writing  is  that  what  is  everybody's  business  is  nobody's  business; 
that  it  is  not  made,  as  it  should  be,  the  special  work  of  some  one  year 
to  teach  the  various  forms.  I  have  been  surprised  in  the  last  three 
years  to  see  how  many  letters  come  to  the  Matron  of  our  institution 
commencing  "My  dear  Helen,"  and  how  many  were  sent  to  the 
Superintendent  giving  his  first  name,  as  though  they  were  writing  to 
their  brother  or  some  member  of  the  family,  or  some  of  their  dearest 
friends.  I  think  it  should  be  made  a  special  exercise  during  the 
year,  of  some  one  class. 

Mr.  Crouter:  We  make  letter  writing  an  exercise  through  almost 
all  of  the  years  of  the  whole  course. 

Mr.  Ely:  The  next  question  is:  "I  once  asked  of  a  certain  teacher 
which  was,  in  his  judgment,  more  satisfactory,  to  teach  the  present  or 
the  past  tense,  and  he  said  'The  past,'  but,  when  I  asked  him  why, 
he  could  not  tell.  He  further  said,  'I  should  try  to  see  for  myself.' 
So  I  ask  of  you  two  questions:  First— How  long  have  you  been 
teaching  the  present  tense,  exclusively,  and  how  long  the  past  tense, 
exclusively?  Second — In  your  judgment,  which  have  you  found  to 
be  more  successful,  and  how  or  why?"  This  is  referred  to  Mr.  W.  A. 
Caldwell,  of  Indiana. 

Mr.  Caldwell:  I  think  this  subject  has  already  been  discussed. 

The  past  tense  seems  to  me  to  be  the  most  natural  of  any  tense.     But 

since  my  first  work  in  teaching,  I  have  never  had  a  young  class, 

myself,  and  I  hardly  know  which  to  advocate.     For  my  own  part,  I 

10d 


146         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

prefer  the  past  tense.     If  we  ever  have  any  tense  in  our  minds  I 
think  it  must  be  the  past  tense,  in  thinking  of  any  action.     We  do 
not  think  of  it  as  present,  but  it  has  already  past.     But  this  is  merely 
a  matter  of  opinion. 
Adjourned  to  half-past  seven  o'clock  p.  m. 


Afternoon  Session. 

President  Gillett,  in  the  chair,  called  the  meeting  to  order. 

Prayer  was  offered  by  Rev.  Mr.  Masters,  of  San  Francisco. 

The  Secretary  read  the  minutes  of  the  last  meeting,  which  were 
approved. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  paper  will  be  "  The  True  Combined  Sys- 
tem of  Instruction,"  by  Mr.  Crouter,  of  Philadelphia, 

THE   TRUE   COMBINED   SYSTEM   OF   INSTRUCTION. 

The  relative  merits  of  the  oral,  manual,  and  combined  methods  of 
instruction,  as  pursued  in  American  institutions  for  the  deaf,  have 
been  so  frequently  and  fully  discussed  that  their  further  consideration 
may  possibly  appear  to  many  superfluous;  but,  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
these  discussions  have,  as  yet,  led  to  no  conclusions  that  have  been 
accepted  by  the  adherents  of  the  different  methods,  I  trust  that  a  brief 
exposition  of  the  defects  of  certain  of  them,  and  of  the  advantages  of 
a  system  which  I  am  led  by  experience  to  believe  possesses  the  merits 
of  all  of  them,  with  the  smallest  possible  proportion  of  the  defects  of 
any,  may  be  of  interest  to  the  members  of  this  convention. 

In  the  "American  Annals  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,"  of  January,  1882, 
Professor  Fay,  of  the  National  Deaf  Mute  College,  says,  after  briefly 
describing  the  oral  method  of  instruction:  "The  combined  method  is 
not  so  easy  to  define,  as  the  term  is  applied  to  several  distinct  methods, 
such  as:  (1)  the  free  use  of  signs  and  articulation  with  the  same  pupils 
and  by  the  same  instructors,  throughout  the  course  of  instruction; 
(2)  the  general  instruction  of  all  the  pupils  by  means  of  the  manual 
method,  with  the  special  training  of  part  of  them  in  articulation  and 
lip  reading,  as  an  accomplishment;  (3)  the  instruction  of  some  pupils 
by  the  manual  method  and  others  by  the  oral  method,  in  the  same 
institution;  (4)  although  this  is  rather  a  combined  system,  the  em- 
ployment of  the  manual  method  and  oral  method  in  separate  schools 
and  under  the  same  general  management,  pupils  being  placed  in  one 
establishment  or  the  other,  as  seems  best  in  each  individual  case." 

In  this  concise  yet  comprehensive  statement,  Professor  Fay  sets 
forth  very  clearly  the  salient  features  of  the  four  distinct  methods  of 
instructing  the  deaf  that  are  severally  and  collectively  included  in 
the  term,  "The  American  or  Combined  Method." 

Beyond  pointing  out  their  advantages  and  commending  them  to 
the  serious  attention  of  the  members  of  the  convention,  and  especially 
of  those  who  are  at  the  head  of  large  schools,  where  a  system  of  classi- 
fication according  to  the  natural  powers  of  deaf  children  can  be  most 
fully  and  profitably  carried  out,  I  shall  have  but  little  to  say  concern- 
ing the  last  two  of  the  methods  enumerated;  but  the  first  and  second 
are  so  fraught  with  what,  after  a  somewhat  lengthy  personal  experi- 


OF   AMERICAN  INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  147 

ence,  I  have  come  to  believe  is  hurtful  to  the  best  interests  of  the  deaf. 
that  1  propose  to  state,  as  briefly  as  the  nature  of  the  subject  will 
allow,  my  objections  to  them,  and  to  urge  their  discontinuance  as  a 
part  of  the  American  system  of  instruction. 

The  first  of  these  methods  seeks,  by  the  free  use  of  both  signs  and 
articulation,  by  the  same  teachers,  in  the  same  classes,  to  instruct  all 
deaf  children  in  spoken  and  written  language  and  other  branches  of 
study.  It  is  to  this  and  to  the  succeeding  method  that  reference  is 
most  commonly  made  when  the  term  "combined  method"  is  used. 
A  more  appropriate  name  for  it  would  be,  in  my  opinion,  the  mixed 
method,  for  there  can  certainly  be  no  combination  between  two  ele- 
ments of  a  system  of  instruction  which  not  only  do  not  work  together 
for  a  common  object,  but  positively  antagonize  each  other.  A  teacher 
working  under  this  method  not  only  tries  to  teach,  by  the  aid  cf  signs, 
the  ordinary  branches  of  a  common  school  education,  which,  with 
deaf  children,  is  a  sufficiently  difficult  task  when  performed  under 
the  most  favorable  circumstances,  but,  also,  attempts  to  impart,  as  a 
separate  branch  of  study,  a  knowledge  of  articulation  and  lip  reading. 
Here  we  have  two  entirely  distinct  and  independent  objects  to  be 
attained,  each  of  which  ordinarily  demands  the  whole  time  and  atten- 
tion of  an  earnest  instructor  for  its  accomplishment.  He  then  must 
be  twice  a  man  who,  unaided,  can  bring  about  their  satisfactory  ful- 
fillment. Mark  that  the  purpose  is  not  to  give  instruction  orally  in 
the  ordinary  branches  of  study  (this  is  done  by  manual  means),  but 
to  teach  articulation  and  lip  reading  in  addition  to  them.  Time  thus 
devoted  to  articulation  and  speech  reading,  as  an  accomplishment,  is 
time  taken  from  the  other  branches;  it  is  insufficient  for  the  attain- 
ment of  the  object  in  view,  and,  as  a  result,  the  child  usually  leaves 
school  with  imperfect  powers  of  articulation  which  he  soon  loses  from 
a  disinclination  to  use  them  (which  disinclination  arises  principally 
from  his  own  knowledge  of  his  imperfections),  and,  frequently,  an 
inadequate  knowledge  of  other  and  more  essential  branches  of  study. 

Oral  and  manual  instruction  cannot  be  successfully  imparted  in 
the  same  class.  The  methods  are  diametrically  opposed  to  each 
other,  and  when  pursued  thus  closely  together  they  expend  their 
powers  in  counteracting  the  influence  for  good  that  each  possesses. 
Under  this  form,  the  semi-mute,  to  whom  the  oral  method  is  obviously 
best  adapted,  falls  gradually  into  habits  of  manual  communication 
with  resulting  detriment  to  his  speech  and  speech  reading,  while,  to 
the  congenital  mute,  the  time  thus  devoted  to  articulation  is  ordina- 
rily time  wasted.  Another  defect  of  this  method  lies  in  the  fact  that 
it  brings  together  in  the  school-room  two  greatly  dissimilar  classes 
of  pupils.  Very  often  there  js  a  greater  dissimilarity  between  the 
semi-mute  and  the  congenital  mute  than  between  the  semi-mute  and 
the  hearing  child.  A  well  known  English  writer  has  said  that  a 
child  learns  more  in  the  first  seven  years  of  its  existence  than  in  all 
the  rest  of  its  life.  While  this  assertion  may  be  somewhat  extrava- 
gant, it  is  certainly  true  that  the  development  of  a  child's  mind  is 
proportionately  much  more  rapid  during  the  first  four  or  five  years 
of  its  life  than  afterwards,  and  the  child  who,  during  these  years, 
has  been  in  full  possession  of  all  his  normal  faculties,  will  have  a 
better  developed  mind  and  possess  greater  mental  powers  than  one 
who  has  been  deaf  from  birth.  This  being  true,  different  methods 
of  instruction  are  required  for  different  classes  of  pupils,  if  each  is  to 


148  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

make  the  fullest  possible  progress.  For  congenital  mutes,  minute 
explanations  and  constant  repetitions  are  necessary  which  to  semi- 
mutes  are  generally  superfluous  and  irksome;  the  former  are  slow  of 
comprehension,  and  have  constantly  to  retrace  their  steps;  the  latter 
are  quick,  and  anxious  and  able  to  press  forward  rapidly.  Thus  it 
happens,  when  the  two  are  brought  together  in  the  same  school-room 
to  receive  the  same  instruction,  the  semi-mute  cannot  make  as  rapid 
progress  as  he  would  if  unimpeded  by  those  who  cannot  keep  step 
with  him,  while  the  true  mute,  in  struggling  to  keep  up  with  his 
more  favored  classmate,  suffers  not  only  from  the  disadvantage  of 
unequal  mental  development,  but  the  added  one  of  imperfect  train- 
ing, the  result  of  a  defective  system  of  classification  and  improper 
methods  of  instruction.  The  semi-mute  chafes  at  the  delay,  and 
gradually  loses  interest  in  his  studies,  while  the  congenital  mute 
becomes  discouraged,  and  finally  sinks  into  a  state  of  indifference, 
from  which  he  is  with  difficulty  aroused. 

As  for  the  teacher,  he  is  but  human,  and  cannot  serve  two  masters 
in  the  school-room  any  more  effectually  than  he  can  out  of  it.  His 
desire  to  make  a  good  record  as  an  instructor  tempts  him  to  devote 
his  time  to  the  most  progressive  portion  of  his  class,  to  the  neglect  of 
those  most  worthy  of  his  best  efforts.  The  mischief  that  results  is  not 
the  fault  of  the  teacher,  but  that  of  the  system  under  which  he  is  com- 
pelled to  labor;  and  we  think  we  but  state  the  truth  when  we  assert 
that,  to  the  conscientious  teacher,  this  method  is  the  source  of  constant 
harassment  and  painful  misgiving  concerning  the  best  welfare  of  his 
pupils.  Professor  Storrs,  in  an  able  article  in  the  "American  Annals," 
says:  "As  a  teacher,  then,  having  regard  only  for  the  best  work  of 
my  class  and  to  the  maximum  of  advantage  to  the  most  needy,  and 
I  may  add,  the  most  interesting  portion,  I  confess  I  am  always 
unfeignedly  sorry  to  see  any  semi-mute,  however  bright,  claiming 
any  portion  of  my  time  and  effort.  I  know  that  such  a  pupil  does 
not  need,  in  any  special  degree,  that  peculiar  instruction  which  it  is 
my  privilege  to  attempt  to  give  to  such  as  do  need  it."  There  are,  I 
believe,  few  teachers  who  do  not  echo  these  sentiments  of  Professor 
Storrs.  They  appreciate  more  fully  than  any  one  the  unequal  con- 
test the  two  classes  are  waging,  and  yet,  though  their  sympathies  may 
go  out  to  their  struggling  deaf-mutes,  they  find  themselves  compelled, 
by  the  necessities  of  their  position,  to  neglect  the  weaker  for  the 
stronger,  the  striplings  in  knowledge  for  their  more  robust  com- 
petitors. 

The  second  form  of  the  combined  method,  as  defined  by  Professor 
Fay,  is  that  wherein  the  general  instruction  of  all  the  pupils  is  car- 
ried on  by  means  of  the  manual  method,  with  the  special  training  in 
separate  classes,  of  a  part  of  them,  usually  the  semi-mutes  only,  in 
articulation  and  lip  reading  as  an  accomplishment.  This  appears  to 
be  the  most  popular  method  of  instruction  in  America  to-day.  It  is 
also,  in  my  opinion,  the  most  mischievous,  for  it  is  open  to  all  the 
objections  urged  against  the  previous  method,  and  several  additional 
ones  peculiar  to  itself.  Under  it  the  special  accomplishment  of  arti- 
culation and  speech  reading  is  gained,  if  gained  at  all,  at  the  expense 
of  attainments  far  more  important  and  practical  to  the  pupils  to 
whom  it  is  generally  confined,  and  the  general  progress  of  the  rest  of 
the  class  is  very  seriously  interrupted.  The  training  semi-mutes 
receive  in  this  way  very  often  fails  to  give  them  even  a  moderate  dex- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  149 

terity  in  speech  and  speech  reading.  A  comparison  of  the  attain- 
ments of  pupils  in  schools  where  their  whole  training  has  been  oral 
with  those  of  similar  standing  whose  training  has  been  of  the  inter- 
mittent character  of  the  so  called  combined  method,  conclusively 
demonstrates  to  me  the  superiority  of  the  former  in  articulation  and 
speech  reading.  This  statement  may  seem  extravagant  and  unwar- 
ranted by  facts,  but,  after  a  careful  and  somewhat  extended  exami- 
nation of  the  results  accomplished  under  pure  oral  training,  and 
combined  training,  I  am  bound  to  admit  that  with  some  exceptions, 
pupils  trained  under  the  former  method  excel  in  these  two  respects. 

And  this,  in  the  nature  of  things,  cannot  be  otherwise.  Instructors 
in  oral  schools  are  just  as  earnest,  enthusiastic,  painstaking,  and  capa- 
ble as  are  the  teachers  of  articulation  in  sign  schools;  their  pupils  are 
naturally  just  as  bright  and  receptive,  and  why  should  they  not 
accomplish  more  in  this  direction,  working  four  or  more  hours  a  day, 
than  we,  under  the  combined  method,  working  a  half,  or  perhaps  one 
hour,  a  day.  To  expect  any  other  result  appears  to  me  absurd.  Be- 
sides, the  constant  means  of  communication  in  the  former  case  being 
by  the  voice,  the  child  comes  to  look  upon  it  as  the  natural  and  only 
right  means  of  communication;  while,  in  the  combined  school,  the 
pupils  being  constantly  surrounded  by  those  who  use  signs,  and 
receiving  a  great  part  of  their  own  instruction  through  the  medium 
of  the  same  language,  they  soon  acquire  a  dislike  for  oral  instruction, 
and  practice  their  powers  of  oral  communication  to  a  very  limited 
degree  only.  They  look  upon  it  as  an  imposition,  an  irksome  task 
from  which  their  schoolmates  are  excused,  and  very  often  are  found 
in  no  happy  frame  of  mind  when  the  hour  for  articulation  work 
arrives.  This,  of  course,  makes  the  work  of  the  teacher  all  the  more 
severe;  he  has  to  work  against  the  grain,  which  is  no  pleasant  addi- 
tion to  the  other  difficulties  of  his  position.  Indeed,  considering  all 
the  disadvantages  under  which  they  labor,  it  is  surprising  that  teach- 
ers of  articulation  working  under  this  method  accomplish  as  much 
as  they  do. 

While  this  oral  work  is  going  on  in  the  articulation-room,  the 
teacher  from  whose  class  the  pupils  have  been  taken  is  indulging  in 
thoughts  not  in  the  highest  degree  complimentary  to  an  arrangement 
that  daily  breaks  up  his  work,  and  is  often  perplexed  beyond  meas- 
ure how  best  to  fill  in  the  time  with  so  many  of  his  pupils  absent. 
He  cannot  go  on  with  his  regular  course  of  instruction,  and,  conse- 
quently, a  large  portion  of  his  class  is  obliged  to  suffer  for  the  doubt- 
ful advantage  afforded  to  a  few  of  its  members. 

In  short,  it  may  be  said  of  this  form  of  instruction  that  the  pupils 
dislike  it;  the  teachers  dislike  it;  it  fails  very  largely  to  accomplish 
what  it  attempts;  and  it  is  a  decided  hindrance  to  the  general  pro- 
gress of  both  manual  and  oral  work. 

If  the  experience  of  others  confirms  the  truth  of  this  picture,  it  is 
certainly  time  that  some  remedy  were  provided. 

To  me,  the  remedy  is  a  very  simple  and  effective  one,  and,  I  am 
glad  to  say,  is  embodied  in  the  last  two  forms  noted  in  Professor  Fay's 
definition  of  the  combined  method. 

Under  the  first  of  these  two  forms,  oral  instruction  and  manual 
instruction  are  given  in  the  same  institution,  but  in  separate  classes, 
the  pupils  being  taught  by  one  means  or  the  other,  as  in  the  judgment 
of  the  Principal  may  appear  best— manual  instruction  being  given  to 


150  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

those  who  should  be  manually  taught,  and  oral  instruction  to  those 
who  may  most  profitably  be  taught  in  that  way.  Under  this  arrange- 
ment, the  evils  attendant  upon  the  two  first  mentioned  forms  largely, 
if  not  wholly,  disappear,  and  each  child  enjoys  that  form  of  instruc- 
tion best  suited  to  his  condition. 

In  the  institution  which  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  before  this 
convention,  this  form  of  separate  oral  instruction  has  been  pursued 
in  two  of  the  classes  in  the  main  school,  for  three  years,  with  gratify- 
ing success.  In  one  of  them,  the  youngest,  the  pupils  may  be  regarded 
as  being  congenitally  deaf;  for,  if  they  were  not  born  deaf,  they  lost 
their  hearing  so  early  in  life  that  no  trace  of  speech  remained  when 
they  entered  the  school;  the  other  consists  mostly  of  semi-mutes  and 
two  bright  congenitals.  Although  no  attempt  has  been  made  to 
restrict  these  children  in  the  use  of  signs  out  of  the  class-room,  their 
progress  in  articulation,  speech  reading,  language,  and  arithmetic  has 
been  highly  satisfactory.  Indeed,  I  am  inclined  to  the  opinion  (the 
future,  however,  may  prove  that  in  this  I  am  wrong)  that  the  use  of 
signs  on  the  grounds,  in  the  play-rooms,  and  in  the  chapel  has  been 
an  advantage  to  them  in  the  way  of  mental  development.  The  prog- 
ress of  these  pupils  is  to  me  a  matter  of  deep  interest;  if  it  continues 
uninterruptedly  to  the  end  of  the  course,  it  seems  to  me  the  possi- 
bility of  prosecuting  successful  oral  work  in  a  manual  school  will  be 
proven  beyond  a  doubt. 

There  is  an  objection  (I  am  willing  to  concede  a  serious,  though  by 
no  means  a  fatal  objection)  to  this  form  of  instruction,  arising  from 
the  fact  that  the  pupils  who  are  thus  being  instructed  orally  are  con- 
stantly subjected  to  the  seductive  influences  of  signs.  To  many  who 
favor  the  pure  oral  method,  this  would  appear  an  insurmountable 
objection,  but  with  the  experience  I  have  had  upon  the  subject,  I  do 
not  so  regard  it,  and  maintain  that,  if  not  equal  to  the  last,  it  is  at 
least  vastly  superior  to  the  first  two  mentioned  forms.  Under  it,  the 
congenital  mute  is  not  subjected  to  the  discouragements  that  arise 
from  constant  competition  with  those  who  possess  superior  natural 
advantages,  and  the  semi-mute  is  not  retarded  by  those  who  are  less 
quick  of  comprehension  than  himself  ;  the  teacher  is  not  tempted  to 
favor  one  pupil  at  the  expense  of  another,  and  is  not  subjected  to 
daily  interruptions  of  his  work;  and  the  progress  of  the  semi-mute 
in  articulation  and  lip  reading  is  much  more  rapid  and  permanent. 

But  the  last  form  mentioned  by  Professor  Fay  affords,  in  my  opinion, 
the  best  possible  system  for  the  instruction  of  the  deaf.  It  provides 
instruction  in  separate  schools,  under  the  same  general  management, 
for  both  classes;  those  who  can  best  be  instructed  manually  being  so 
instructed,  and  those  who  can  best  be  instructed  orally  receiving  oral 
instruction.  The  advantages  of  a  school  so  organized  are  worthy  of 
serious  consideration.  The  question  whether  the  child  should  be  in- 
structed orally  or  manually  presents  no  disturbing  difficulties  since, 
being  left  to  the  impartial  and  unprejudiced  judgment  of  the  head  of 
the  school,  it  is  solved  solely  with  a  view  to  the  best  interests  of  the 
pupil,  and  without  any  reference  whatever  to  the  discordant  claims 
of  rival  methods. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that,  organized  as  most  of  our  schools  are  at 
present,  many  children  are  compelled,  owing  to  the  selfish  interests 
of  the  advocates  of  the  methods  under  which  they  are  being  instructed, 
to  undergo  a  course  of  training  wholly  unsuited  to  their  condition. 
On  the  one  hand  are  the  adherents  of  the  pure  oral  method,  who  say: 


OF   AMERICAN  INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  151 

Teach  all  orally— any  deaf  child  that  can  be  taught  at  all,  can  be 
taught  to  speak.  And  on  the  other  hand  are  those  equally  extreme 
in  their  views  who  maintain  that  all  should  be  instructed  by  the 
manual  method,  with  articulation  and  lip  reading  thrown  in  as  an 
accomplishment;  that  to  attempt  more  is  a  waste  of  time,  and  must 
result  in  great  loss  to  the  pupil  in  the  way  of  mental  development. 
And  in  attempting  to  prove  the  correctness  of  their  theories,  both 
classes  of  instructors  do  great  injustice  to  a  large  proportion  of  the 
children  confided  to  their  care. 

Surely  the  time  has  come  when  all  may  yield  somewhat  in  their 
extreme  views,  and  unite  upon  a  surer,  truer,  and  more  practical  sys- 
tem of  instruction  than  the  one  they  now  advocate;  one  which,  while 
giving  the  greatest  freedom  as  to  method,  will  secure  that  kind  of 
instruction  best  suited  to  each  child.  This  system,  which  at  the  head 
of  this  paper  has  been  called  the  True  Combined  System  of  Instruc- 
tion, includes,  under  one  management,  manual  instruction,  pure  and 
unadulterated,  for  all  who  may  most  profitably  be  so  taught,  and  oral 
instruction,  pure  and  unadulterated,  for  all  who  can  most  effectually 
be  educated  by  that  method.  It  discards  all  attempts  to  provide 
accomplishments  of  any  kind,  and  confines  itself  to  what  appears 
wisest,  best,  and  most  practicable  for  each  individual  case. 

For  all  practical  purposes,  and  in  order  to  secure  immunity  from 
error  in  the  choice  of  methods,  I  would  divide  the  deaf  into  three 
classes,  the  congenitally  deaf,  the  semi-deaf,  and  the  semi-mute.  With 
the  first  I  would  include  those  born  deaf,  and  those  who  lose  their 
hearing  from  accidental  causes  very  early  in  life,  say  witiiin  the  age  of 
three  joy  four  years.  These,  for  the  most  part,  I  would  instruct  man- 
ually. The  semi-mute  and  the  semi-deaf,  and  such  of  the  congen- 
itally deaf  as  appear  particularly  bright  and  quick  to  learn,  I  would 
instruct  orally.  A  few  months'  or  a  year's  trial  will  enable  the  Prin- 
cipal or  Superintendent  to  decide  whether  a  mistake  has  been  made 
in  any  individual  case,  and  if  so,  a  change  should  be  quickly  effected. 
But  having  definitely  decided  on  the  method  best  adapted  to  each 
pupil,  let  that  form  be  adhered  to.  If  the  child  is  to  learn  to  speak, 
let  speech  be  its  means  of  communication,  and  not  signs  or  writing 
or  spelling;  if,  on  the  other  hand,  speech  is  believed  to  be  impractica- 
ble, dismiss  all  attempts  to  teach  orally,  and  resort  fully  and  heartily 
to  manual  methods., 

After  a  trial  for  several  years  of  the  second  method  of  instruction 
as  defined  by  Professor  Fay,  the  managers  of  the  Pennsylvania  insti- 
tution, deeming  the  results  obtained  by  it  unsatisfactory  as  regards 
articulation  and  speech  reading,  determined  to  make  a  trial  of  the 
pure  oral  method,  under  the  same  management  but  in  a  building 
separate  from  the  main  institution.  Accordingly,  an  oral  school  was 
organized  at  a  convenient  distance  from  the  parent  school,  and  placed 
in  charge  of  a  principal  teacher  and  several  assistants.  The  school 
passed  through  the  usual  vicissitudes  of  all  such  experiments.  It  had 
its  friends  and  its  foes.  The  former  stoutly  maintained  that  all  deaf 
children  could  be  taught  orally,  while  the  latter  contended  that  very 
few  true  mutes  could  be  benefited  by  that  method,  and  that  results 
would  never  warrant  the  outlay  of  time  and  money  necessary  to 
attain  them.  Happily,  neither  side  was  able  to  carry  out  its  extreme 
views,  and  with  the  lapse  of  time  more  moderate  and  conservative 
counsels  began  to  prevail;  for,  while  the  results  were  not  such  as  its 
most  ardent  friends  had  expected,  still,  enough  had  been  done  to 


152  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

fully  warrant  the  continuance  of  the  school.  It  was,  therefore,  reor- 
ganized and  brought  more  into  harmony  with  the  parent  institution, 
thereby  securing,  as  is  believed,  the  greater  efficiency  of  both.  It  is 
believed  that  a  large  percentage  of  our  pupils,  namely,  the  semi-mutes 
and  the  semi-deaf,  and  such  of  the  congenitally  deaf  (few  in  number, 
probably)  as  are  capable  of  receiving  oral  instruction,  can  and  should 
be  orally  taught,  and  that  all  others,  forming,  to  be  sure,  the  majority 
of  the  pupils,  should  be  taught  by  manual  methods. 

The  objection  so  often  urged  against  separate  oral  instruction,  that 
of  the  increased  expense,  has  not  proven  with  us  at  all  formidable. 
It  has  been  found,  by  actual  experiment,  that  the  capita  cost  of  main- 
taining a  separate  oral  school  under  the  same  management  is  but 
slightly  greater  than  that  of  the  parent  school.  But,  however  this 
may  be,  when  the  importance  of  speech  to  a  deaf  person  is  considered, 
the  slightly  increased  outlay  incurred  in  providing  it  should  have 
but  little  weight.  When  a  deaf  child  is  able  to  make  itself  under- 
stood by  its  voice,  even  though  unable  to  read  the  lips,  its  affliction  is 
very  greatly  diminished,  and  no  one  will  deny  that  it  is  our  duty  to 
lighten  the  misfortune  of  deafness  in  every  possible  way. 

We  consider  our  departure  no  longer  within  the  domain  of  experi- 
ment; it  has  become  an  accomplished  fact.  The  two  systems  are 
working  harmoniously,  side  by  side,  each  contributing  not  a  little  to 
the  success  of  the  other,  and  separate  oral  and  manual  instruction 
will,  in  future,  be  a  prominent  feature  of  the  system  pursued  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  paper  is  "The  Combined  System  of 
Instruction,"  by  Dr.  I.  L.  Peet,  of  New  York: 

THE  COMBINED  SYSTEM  OF  EDUCATION,  AS  PRACTICED  IN  THE  NEW  YORK 
INSTITUTION  FOR  THE  INSTRUCTION  OF  THE  DEAF  AND  DUMB. 

Combination  is  the  condition  in  which  we  find  everything  in 
nature.  The  elements  are  so  seldom  found  in  an  uncombined  state, 
that  rarely  can  one  of  them  be  released  except  by  effecting  a  new 
combination.  Air,  water,  earth,  soil,  ores,  rocks,  present  familiar 
instances  of  this  chemical  fact.  Animal  and  vegetable  life,  rising  a 
step  or  many  steps  higher,  introducing  the  principle  of  the  transmu- 
tation of  inorganic  into  organic  matter,  exhibit  yet  more  remarkable 
phenomena  belonging  to  the  domain  of  chemical  affinity,  while  the 
great  laws  of  heat,  of  pressure,  of  attraction,  of  repulsion,  and  of  elec- 
trical action  illustrate  the  influence  which  every  particle  of  matter 
exercises  upon  evejy  other  particle,  from  the  minute  atoms  which 
so  far  escape  human  observation,  even  though  aided  by  the  magnify- 
ing powers  of  the  microscope,  as  to  be  recognizable  only  by  the  imag- 
ination, to  those  stellar  worlds  which,  revolving  about  some  central 
sun,  form  systems  upon  systems,  which,  in  their  turn,  and  observing 
due  relations  to  each  other,  revolve  in  the  immensity  of  space  around 
some  common  center,  which  may  be  the  throne  of  God. 

It  is  in  accordance  with  the  general  law  thus  manifested,  of  unity 
in  complexity,  that  analysis,  the  resolution  of  a  whole  into  its  parts, 
and  of  greater  parts  into  smaller  parts,  becomes  so  important  to  him 
who,  by  right  of  discovery  or  of  full  comprehension,  would  lead  the 
minds  of  children  and  youth  from  those  simple  elements  he  has 
brought  within  their  grasp,  step  by  step,  through  that  synthetic, 
reconstructive,  inductive  process  which  enables  them  to  reach  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  153 

heights  to  which  he  would  lead  them,  and,  from  every  level  gained, 
bring  them  back,  by  a  process  of  deduction,  to  the  elements  from 
which  they  started,  enlarging  the  area  at  each  descent  by  increasing 
the  number  of  details,  and  elevating  it  at  each  ascent.  It  may  be 
compared  to  that  method  of  drawing  which,  beginning  with  simple 
lines,  unites  them  in  a  general  outline,  and  then,  proceeding  to  give 
the  effects  of  light  and  shade,  ends  in  giving  a  projection  so  perfect 
as  to  produce  upon  the  retina  of  the  eye  the  same  impression  as  that 
produced  by  the  object  counterfeited;  or  to  that  method  of  printing 
which,  at  each  impression,  introduces  a  new  color,  until,  as  a  result, 
we  have  a  picture  glowing  with  blended  and  harmonious  tints;  or  to 
those  methods  of  manufacture  which  require  repeated  application  of 
different  tools,  one  after  the  other,  to  produce,  in  the  highest  degree, 
the  effect  sought. 

It  is  such  a  process  that  forms  my  ideal  of  what  is  called  the  com- 
bined system  of  educating  the  congenitally  deaf;  not  a  system  which 
practices,  in  the  same  institution,  methods  differing  so  fundament- 
ally that  they  ought,  from  the  nature  of  things,  to  be  separated  from 
each  other  and  used  in  separated  schools,  but  a  system  which  brings, 
for  the  benefit  of  each  pupil,  so  far  as  is  applicable  to  his  case,  every 
known  method  which  has  been  found  useful  in  giving  him  a  knowl- 
edge of  written  and  spoken  language,  and  of  those  facts,  ideas,  pro- 
cesses, and  principles  which  constitute  what  is  called  a  good  common 
school  education. 

What  has  been  called  the  American  system  of  deaf-mute  instruc- 
tion was  based  upon  the  methods  of  the  Abbe  Sicard,  the  disciple 
and  successor  of  L)e  L'Epee,  which  were  introduced  into  this  country 
by  the  illustrious  Thomas  Hopkins  Gallaudet,  LL.D.,  aided  by  that 
remarkable  living  deaf-mute  exponent  of  Sicard's  system,  Laurent 
Clerc. 

To  Sicard  are  we  indebted  for  the  idea  of  grammatical  analysis  by 
means  of  symbols,  which,  starting  from  him  and  enlarged  by  Vai'sse 
and  Barnard  at  New  York,  has  reached  a  fuller,  more  complete,  and 
more  practical  stage  under  the  labors  of  subsequent  American  instruct- 
ors. To  him,  also,  is  due  the  first  successful  attempt  to  classify  signs 
and  to  describe  them  upon  paper. 

His  dictionary  of  signs  gave  a  correct  analysis  of  abstract  terms, 
but  made  the  system  which  he  advocated  difficult  to  carry  out.  He 
believed  largely  in  the  value  of  making  signs  in  the  order  of  words, 
and  was,  in  a  high  degree,  formal  and  didactic  in  his  methods.  But 
he  was  a  man  of  genius,  and,  for  a  time,  the  highest  authority  on  deaf 
mute  education. 

The  early  American  instructors,  however,  following  the  lead  of 
Bebian  in  France,  early  emancipated  themselves  from  the  trammels 
thrown  about  them  by  Sicard,  and  advocated  largely  the  use  of  ideo- 
graphic signs  with  which  ideas  were  expressed  in  the  natural  pictorial 
order  which  uneducated  deaf-mutes  most  easily  understood,  and 
giving,  therefor,  English  equivalents  in  phrases  and  clauses. 

Associated  with  this  development  was  a  printed  course  of  instruc- 
tion by  Dr.  H.  P.  Peet,  then  President  of  the  New  York  institution. 

Following  him,  but  differing  from  him,  came  Jacobs,  of  Kentucky, 
who  advocated  Sicard's  early  ideas  of  signs  in  the  order  of  words,  and 
wrote  a  text-book  to  illustrate  his  theory. 

All  this  while,  the  controversies  of  the  day, 
water,  hinged  entirely  on  the  method  of  using  si[^ 

~RSIT1 


154  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

The  report  of  Hon.  Horace  Mann,  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion in  the  State  of  Massachusetts,  on  his  return  from  an  extensive 
educational  tour  of  Europe,  in  which  he  gave  such  glowing  accounts 
of  the  extraordinary  success  alleged  to  have  been  attained  in  Ger- 
many in  teaching  the  congenitally  deaf  to  speak  and  to  read  on  the 
lips — accounts  which  led  many  to  believe  that  all  differences  between 
the  congenitally  hearing  and  the  congenitally  deaf  had  been  removed 
by  a  wonderful  system  of  instruction,  made  it  necessary  that  the 
American  institutions  should  investigate  the  matter  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  expert,  and,  accordingly,  in  the  year  1844,  the  American 
Asylum  at  Hartford  and  the  Institution  for  the  Instruction  of  the 
Deaf  and  Dumb  in  New  York,  sent,  as  delegates  to  visit  the  schools 
in  Europe,  the  one,  Lewis  Weld,  its  Principal,  and  the  other,  Prof. 
George  E.  Day,  a  fine  German  scholar  who  had,  for  many  years,  been 
one  of  its  corps  of  teachers.  Professor  Day,  sixteen  years  later,  visited 
Europe  again,  and  examined  the  schools  in  Holland  and  the  Nether- 
lands. 

The  reports  of  these  gentlemen,  though  absolutely  independent  of 
each  other,  concurred  in  the  opinion,  that,  while  there  was  no 
advantage  whatever  in  the  system  of  instruction  that  obtained  in 
Germany,  where  it  had  been  established  by  Heincke,  the  cotemporary 
of  De  L/Epee,  so  far  as  development  of  mind,  extent  of  knowledge, 
and  the  acquisition  of  language  were  concerned,  over  the  French 
system  as  modified  and  improved  in  America,  but  rather,  a  positive 
disadvantage,  and,  while  appreciable  success  in  articulation  and  lip 
reading  were  limited  to  the  comparatively  few,  there  were  cases  of 
semi-mute  and  semi-deaf  pupils  in  every  institution  whose  intercourse 
with  society  would  be  promoted  if  they  should  be  taught  articulation 
and  reading  on  the  lips.  Accordingly,  in  both  the  asylum  at  Hart- 
ford and  the  institution  in  New  York,  a  part  of  each  day  was  set 
aside  for  training  certain  pupils  in  what  was  considered  a  desirable 
accomplishment — that  of  acquiring  accurate  speech  and  some  ability 
to  read  the  lips. 

In  1851  my  father,  the  late  Dr.  H.  P.  Peet,  accompanied  by  myself 
and  three  deaf  mutes,  who  were  able  to  bear  their  own  expenses  and 
wished  to  avail  themselves  of  this  opportunity  to  travel,  spent  about 
six  months  in  a  tour  of  France,  Italy,  and  Switzerland,  the  towns  on 
the  Rhine,  Holland,  Belgium,  and  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  visit- 
ing all  the  institutions  that  came  in  his  way.  Dr.  Peet's  report  con- 
tained a  very  full  exhibit  of  the  methods  employed  and  the  results 
obtained  in  these  several  institutions,  and  is  to  be  regarded  as  a 
standard  historical  statement  of  the  condition  of  deaf-mute  instruc- 
tion at  that  time  in  the  countries  visited. 

The  conclusions  he  reached  did  not  lead  him  to  alter  the  course  of 
instruction  pursued  in  the  NewT  York  institution,  as  he  was  convinced 
that  the  American  system  had  the  prestige  of  superiority,  both  in  its 
language  of  signs  and  in  its  method  of  overcoming  the  difficulties  of 
language.  Of  the  remarkable  revolution  in  methods  in  Italy  and 
France,  which,  within  the  last  few  years,  has  banished  the  use  of 
signs  from  countries  in  which  that  language  seemed  almost  indige- 
nous, and  the  departure  from  the  principle's  of  De  L'Epee,  Sicard,  and 
Pendola,  had  not  then  been  given  the  slightest  premonition. 

In  the  year  1865,  a  devoted,  intelligent,  and  highly  cultivated  lady, 
encouraged  by  Horace  Mann  and  Dr.  Samuel  G.  Howe,  opened,  at 
Chelmsford,  Massachusetts,  a  school  for  teaching  deaf-mutes  on  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  155 

principles  they  had  each  recommended,  namely,  the  non-use  of  signs 
and  of  the  manual  alphabet,  and  the  restriction  of  the  instruction  of  i  ln- 
deaf  and  dumb  to  the  use  of  articulation  and  writing.  The  establish- 
ment, in  1867,  of  the  Clarke  institution,  at  Northampton,  Massachu- 
setts, which  had  been  endowed  by  the  will  of  the  late  John  Clarke, 
brought  Miss  Rogers  into  a  broader  field  of  usefulness,  and  articula- 
tion and  lip  reading  in  this  country  were  raised  to  a  higher  degree  of 
prominence  in  the  education  of  the  deaf.  A  conference  of  Principals, 
held  there  in  1880,  introduced  to  the  notice  of  our  profession  a  charm- 
ing school,  beautiful  in  situation,  happy  and  restful  in  its  manage- 
ment, fascinating  in  its  arrangements.  It  was  in  term  time,  so  that 
the  process  of  instruction  could  be  examined.  The  pupils  appeared 
to  advantage,  and  the  faith  of  some  in  the  manual  system  was  weak- 
ened by  the  success  possible  to  one  that  was  its  opposite. 

In  the  year  1866  came  from  Vienna,  in  Austria,  Bernard  Engels- 
mann,  for  years  a  disciple  and  assistant  of  the  distinguished  Mr. 
Deutsch,  and  established  a  school  in  the  City  of  New  York  in  which 
articulation  was  made  the  means  of  communication  and  instruction. 
A  society  was  formed  for  its  maintenance,  and  eventually,  in  1870, 
secured  from  the  Legislature  of  New  York  a  law  granting  to  it,  under 
the  title  of  "The  Institution  for  the  Improved  Instruction  of  Deaf 
Mutes,"  the  same  privileges  that  had  heretofore  been  granted  exclu- 
sively to  the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Instruction  of  the  Deaf 
and  Dumb,  viz. :  the  selection  of  pupils  between  the  ages  of  six  and 
twelve  by  the  Supervisors  of  the  counties,  to  be  supported  at  the 
expense  of  the  counties,  and  of  youth  over  the  age  oi  twelve  and 
under  the  age  of  twenty-five  by  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, whose  education,  at  fixed  pro  rata,  should  be  paid  for  quarterly 
on  the  warrant  of  the  Comptroller.  This  was  at  first  $300  per  annum, 
which  is  the  highest  limit  established  by  the  law,  but  of  late  years 
has  been  $250. 

Just  before  this  law  was  passed,  the  Principal,  Mr.  Bernard  Engels- 
mann,  resigned  his  position  and  was  immediately  engaged  by  the 
New  York  institution.  Two  large  rooms  and  an  assistant  teacher 
were  assigned  to  him,  and  under  his  care  were  placed  about  forty 
pupils,  some  technically  called  semi-deaf,  because  they  possessed  a 
partial  hearing,  some  technically  called  semi-mutes,  because  they  had 
learned  to  speak  before  becoming  deaf,  and  others  because,  in  the 
previous  instruction  given  in  the  institution,  they  had  shown  a  pecu- 
liar quickness  of  eye  and  mind  which  had  given  them  some  ability 
to  articulate  and  to  read  the  lips.  Singular  to  relate,  Mr.  F.  A.  Rising, 
one  of  the  instructors  in  the  old  New  York  institution,  who  had  paid 
but  little  attention  to  the  subject  of  articulation,  was  elected  Principal 
of  the  institution  which  Mr.  Engelsmann  had  founded  and  left,  and 
it  was  under  his  administration  that  the  institution  was  admitted  to 
State  support.  Mr.  Rising  was  subsequently  succeeded  by  Mr.  D. 
Greenberger,  an  expert  in  teaching  by  articulation.  Mr.  Engelsmann 
remained  with  us  four  years,  till  September  1, 1873,  and  until  the  last 
three  years  a  distinct  department  of  articulation  and  lip  reading  has 
been  maintained  in  the  institution. 

In  the  year  1880  we  determined  to  have  all  the  pupils  m  the  sepa- 
rate primary  department  in  the  Mansion  House  at  Washington 
Heights,  and  in  the  branch  institution  at  Tarrytown,  taught  articu- 
lation and  lip  reading,  and  accordingly  two  teachers,  Miss  Anna  B 
Garrett  and  Miss  Elizabeth  Mitchell,  were  appointed  for  that  special 


156         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

purpose.  This  was  the  method  pursued  in  some  of  the  schools  in 
Europe,  especially  in  Holland  and  Belgium,  which  Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet 
visited  in  1868,  in  the  course  of  a  tour  in  Europe,  in  which  he  made 
a  fresh  comparison  between  the  different  methods  pursued  upon  the 
Continent,  and  which,  in  his  able  and  exhaustive  report,  he  com- 
mended, under  the  name,  then  new,  now  adopted  as  distinctive  in  all 
the  American  institutions,  of  the  combined  system. 

Of  the  fifty-three  public  schools  in  the  United  States  mentioned  in 
the  January  number  of  the  "Annals"  for  1886,  the  method  of  instruc- 
tion of  twenty-nine  is  described  as  combined,  of  ten  is  described  as 
manual,  of  seven  is  described  as  oral,  of  three  is  described  as  oral 
and  combined,  of  two  is  described  as  oral  and  manual,  of  one  is 
described  as  combined  and  aural,  and  of  one  is  not  characterized. 

Of  the  above,  the  only  one  known  to  me  as  having  a  combined  sys- 
tem in  one  establishment,  and  a  pure  oral  system  in  another  estab- 
lishment, from  which  the  use  of  signs  is  entirely  excluded,  is  the 
Pennsylvania  institution,  in  Philadelphia,  which  is  working  out,  for 
the  benefit  of  the  American  schools,  a  most  interesting  problem. 

In  this  convention,  our  obligations  are  due  to  each  and  every  insti- 
tution which  has  brought  here  something  distinctive  for  the  common 
good,  and  which,  in  the  sense  in  which  Dr.  Gallaudet  originally  used 
the  term,  has  given  to  the  convention  which  unites  in  one  body,  in 
mutual  respect  and  appreciation,  all  the  instructors  of  the  deaf  on 
this  continent,  the  broad  catholic  claim  to  be  considered  as  an  impor- 
tant phase  of  the  combined  system. 

In  the  State  of  New  York,  there  are  now  seven  institutions,  in 
which,  on  the  first  of  December  last,  there  were  present,  under  in- 
struction, one  thousand  two  hundred  and  ninety-nine  pupils,  who, 
with  the  exception  of  three  or  four  from  other  States,  all  received 
their  maintenance  from  the  treasuries  of  the  State  and  counties.  Of 
these  seven  institutions,  the  system  of  one  is  given  as  pure  oral,  of 
one  as  oral  and  combined,  and  of  five  as  combined. 

The  system  of  the  oldest  and  largest  of  these,  that  which  I  repre- 
sent, diners  in  toto  from  any  exclusive  system,  such,  for  instance,  as 
rejects  either  the  sign  language  used  in  its  natural  order,  signs  for 
individual  words  used  in  the  English  order,  the  manual  alphabet, 
the  use  of  speech,  and  of  lip  reading,  aural  development,  the  so  called 
natural  method  of  learning  language,  the  grammatical  presentation 
of  the  relation  of  words  in  sentences,  or  any  of  them.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  seeks  to  combine  the  benefits  to  be  derived  from  any  or  all  of 
these  in  the  case,  not  of  selected  pupils,  but  of  each  and  every  pupil. 

Except  in  what  we  call  our  kindergarten  department,  the  hours  of 
instruction  for  each  class  are  four  daily.  The  first  hour  is  devoted  to 
the  recitation  of  the  lesson  conned  in  the  study  hours  out  of  school; 
the  second  hour,  to  exercises  in  the  English  language;  the  third  hour, 
to  arithmetic,  and  the  fourth  hour,  to  lip  reading  and  its  corollary 
articulation. 

The  desks  are  arranged  on  three  sides  of  the  room,  so  that  the 
pupils  may  sit  behind  them,  or  in  front  of  them— behind  them  when 
they  are  obliged  to  use  pen  and  ink ;  in  front  of  them,  in  seats  arranged 
in  the  form  of  a  semicircle  or  semiellipse,  when  they  are  to  receive 
direct  instruction  from  their  teacher.  The  wall  on  the  side  of  the 
room  in  front  of  them,  on  the  teacher's  side,  like  the  wall  in  front  of 
you  as  you  sit  here,  is  lined  with  large  slates.  In  the  recitation  of  the 
lesson  during  the  first  hour,  the  teacher  gives  to  the  class  a  question 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  157 

with  the  manual  alphabet.  One  of  the  pupils,  designated  by  lot,  goes 
to  the  teacher's  slate  and  writes  the  question.  If  he  omits  a  word  or 
makes  any  mistake,  another  pupil  advances  and  corrects  it.  The  first 
pupil  then  gives  a  sign  for  each  word  in  the  question.  He  then  gives 
the  whole  question  in  ideographic  signs,  such  as  the  pupils  are  accus- 
tomed to  use  in  conversation  among  themselves.  He  then  proceeds 
to  answer  the  question  in  writing,  while  the  other  pupils  watch  him 
narrowly  to  see  if  they  can  detect  an  error.  When  he  has  finished 
his  answer  and  his  errors  have  been  corrected  by  one  or  more  of  his 
fellow-pupils,  he  gives  the  answer  by  signs  in  the  same  manner  as  he 
has  given  the  question.  He  then,  if  he  is  able,  repeats  his  answer  by 
articulate  speech.  The  teacher  then  takes  the  opportunity  to  eluci- 
date the  matter  either  in  signs  or  in  language,  as  may  seem  best  under 
the  circumstances.  The  next  pupil  in  order  writes,  explains,  and 
answers  the  next  question  in  the  same  manner;  and  so  on,  till  the 
lesson  is  concluded,  a  record  being  made  of  the  success  of  each  pupil. 

In  the  exercises  in  language  during  the  second  hour,  there  is  con- 
siderable variety  within  each  week  or  month.  Sometimes  the  pupil 
is  required  to  translate  a  story  from  ideographic  signs  given  by  his 
teacher  or  by  one  of  his  dassmates.  Sometimes  he  analyzes  a  sentence 
by  means  of  grammatical  symbols,  giving  especial  attention  to  the 
phrases  and  clauses;  the  teacher  requiring  several  of  the  pupils  to 
rewrite  the  same  sentence  by  placing  the  adverbial  phrases  or  clauses 
at  different  points,  indicated  by  him.  Sometimes  the  exercise  con- 
sists of  conversation,  the  teacher  writing  a  different  question  to  the 
pupils  in  turn,  and  requiring  each  to  give  a  written  answer  in  the 
presence  of  the  class,  or  requiring  each  of  them  to  propose  to  him  a 
written  question,  wThich  he  answers  in  writing. 

In  arithmetic,  the  teacher  explains  by  demonstration  the  principle 
to  be  applied.  He  then  calls  upon  each  of  the  pupils  to  perforin  an 
example  of  this  principle  in  the  presence  of  his  fellows,  and  to  be  so 
explicit  in  his  explanation  of  his  work  as  to  make  the  exercise  one  of 
benefit  to  the  whole  class.  He  then  directs  the  pupils  to  take  the  text- 
book which  he  is  following  to  their  study-room  and  solve  for  them- 
selves, as  an  out-of-school  exercise,  the  problems  therein  given. 

In  the  formal  instruction  in  lip  reading,  each  teacher  uses  a  reader 
of  different  grade,  according  to  the  standing  of  the  class:  Monroe's 
First  and  Second  Readers  being  first  used,  and  afterwards  the  second, 
third,  and  fourth  volumes  of  the  series  of  readers  known  as  Sargent's 
Part  Two.  This  reader  he  retains  in  his  own  hands,  the  pupils  not 
being  permitted  to  have  access  to  it.  He  begins  the  lesson  by  going 
rapidlv  through  the  phonic  alphabet,  which  consists  of  the  different 
consonant  and  vowel  sounds  which  enter  into  the  pronunciation  of 
English  words,  and  as  he  does  so,  each  pupil  gives  the  corresponding 
letter  of  the  manual  alphabet,  modified  so  as  to  secure  an  exact  cor- 
respondence, as  follows: 

p-b-m-f-v:  t-d-n-1-r-s-z-th-th :  sh-zh-tsh=ch-dgh=j,  h ;  k-g-ng-ks  and 
gz=x-koo=qu- 


e,  1,  a,  e,  a ;   oo,  oo,  o,  a,  a,  o  ;   u  ;   ae,  aoo,  ae,  eoo. 

The  teacher  then  dictates,  by  speech,  the  words  composing  one  of 
the  sentences  in  the  book,  and  at  each  articulation  the  pupils  give,  on 
the  hand,  the  corresponding  letter  of  the  manual  alphabet.     W  hen  a 


158  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

word  has  been  once  pronounced,  the  teacher  repeats  it  again  and 
again,  each  time  with  greater  rapidity,  till  the  eyes  of  the  pupils  are 
accustomed  to  the  quick  succession  of  articulations  required  in  its 
enunciation. 

One  of  the  pupils  then  goes  to  the  slate  and  writes  the  word  in 
phonetic  spelling.  Each  word  in  the  sentence  is  thus  given  by  the 
teacher  and  written  by  the  pupils  in  succession,  until  the  whole  sen- 
tence appears  upon  the  slate.  The  pupils  are  then  required,  in  suc- 
cession, to  put  the  orthographic  spelling  under  each  word.  They  are 
enabled  to  do  this  by  a  few  simple  rules  with  regard  to  equivalents 
previously  given  them,  but  when  they  are  unable  to  do  this  the  word 
to  be  translated  is  passed  over  till  the  close  of  the  exercise,  when  its 
true  spelling  is  revealed  by  the  context.  When  the  rules  already 
given  are  not  sufficient  for  the  transformation  from  the  one  kind  of 
spelling  to  the  other,  the  teacher  takes  the  opportunity,  at  the  end  of 
the  exercise,  to  give  a  new  rule  or  to  note  an  exception  so  that  these 
may  be  available  thereafter. 

When  the  sentence  has  been  fully  and  correctly  written,  it  is  trans- 
lated into  signs  by  one  of  the  pupils,  the  phrases  and  clauses  are 
noticed,  and  attention  is  called  to  idioms.  The  exercise  thus  becomes 
a  valuable  lesson  in  language  as  well  as  in  lip  reading.  I  will  give 
an  illustration,  by  writing  a  sentence  first  in  the  phonetic  and  after- 
ward in  the  orthographic  spelling,  so  as  to  give  a  clearer  idea  of  the 
process  detailed: 

E  o"b  o~b  i  1  be  glad  t  o~b  lurn  that   h  o"b  en  o~b  e   retshed    Sak  ra  men  to, 
You  will    be  glad   to     learn  that    when      we      reached     Sacramento, 

o~be  o~bur  met  bae  Mis-tiir  00  il  kin  son  ho~b  greted  us  o"bith  en-tho~b 
we    were    met  by     Mr.  Wilkinson        who  greeted  us  with       enthu- 

zi  azm. 
siasm. 

The  arrangement  of  clauses  may  be  thus  illustrated.  The  adverbial 
clause,  When  we  reached  Sacramento,  may  be  inserted  in  different 
places,  so  as  to  produce  the  following  variations  of  the  sentence, 
"When  we  reached  Sacramento,  we  were  met  by  Mr.  Wilkinson:" 

1.  We,  tvhen  we  reached  Sacramento,  were  met  by  Mr.  Wilkinson. 

2.  We  were,  when  we  reached  Sacramento,  met  by  Mr.  Wilkinson. 

3.  We  were  met,  when  we  reached  Sacramento,  by  Mr.  Wilkinson. 

4.  We  were  met  by  Mr.  Wilkinson,  ivhen  we  reached  Sacramento. 

It  must  be  acknowledged  that  this  process  is  very  slow,  but  it  is, 
also,  very  sure.  The  principle  upon  which  it  is  founded  is  that 
speech  is  nothing  but  phonetic  spelling,  which  can  be  demonstrated 
pari  passu  by  means  of  the  manual  alphabet.  All  the  pupils  above 
the  grade  of  idiocy  are  able  to  master  it,  and  the  exercise  awakens 
every  one  of  them  to  enthusiasm.  The  phonic  alphabet  is  mastered, 
not  by  continual  repetition,  but  by  use  in  speech,  and  it  is  a  remark- 
able fact  that,  after  a  fair  ability  to  read  the  lips  has  been  attained, 
many  pupils  of  themselves  begin  to  articulate,  by  placing  their 
organs  of  speech  in  the  positions  daily  given  them  by  the  teacher, 
and  often  follow  him  as  he  pronounces  the  words. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF    THE   DEAF.  159 

The  progress  in  lip  reading  thus  rendered  certain  in  slow  speech, 
becomes  more  and  more  rapid  from  day  to  day,  so  that  less  and  less 
time  is  consumed  by  the  exercise,  and  they  are  able  to  read  words 
spoken  with  comparative  quickness.  Two  little  semi-mute  boys  in 
our  primary  department  have  reached  a  point  where  they  can  read 
on  the  lips  almost  everything  that  is  said  to  them  at  the  ordinary 
rate  of  speech,  and  when  they  hesitate  at  an  unusual  word,  they  never 
fail  to  catch  it  when  repeated  once  in  slow  speech,  and  the  same  can 
be  said  of  others  of  our  semi-mute  pupils,  while  the  congenitally  deaf 
are  already  approaching  a  point,  where,  with  many  of  them,  it  will 
soon  be  possible,  as  it  will  eventually  be  with  all,  to  make  communi- 
cations with  the  phonic  instead  of  the  manual  alphabet. 

The  method  of  teaching  lip  reading  by  means  of  giving  all  the 
pupils  such  familiarity  with  the  phonic  alphabet,  as  to  enable  them 
to  read  words  at  sight,  has  been  practiced  in  the  New  York  institu- 
tion since  the  fall  of  1882,  the  syllabic  method  having  obtained  up 
to  that  time.  But  the  present  method  of  having  the  lesson  given 
simultaneously  throughout  the  school,  and  of  making  the  teacher  of 
the  class,  instead  of  a  special  teacher  of  articulation,  directly  respon- 
sible, has  been  adopted  only  during  the  last  two  years,  while  the 
plan  of  making  the  lesson  in  lip  reading  a  lesson  in  language  in  con- 
nection with  a  graded  course  of  reading,  has  been  perfected  only 
during  the  last  ten  months. 

The  results  already  gained  are  such  as  to  promise  absolute  success 
in  the  future.  Our  semi-mute  teachers  are  fast  becoming  expert  in 
the  teaching  of  lip  reading. 

They,  as  well  as  our  congenitally  deaf  teachers,  are,  however,  as- 
sisted during  the  lip  reading  hour  by  hearing  young  ladies  of  whom 
we  have  a  number  who  are  learning  all  phases  of  our  combined  sys- 
tem, with  a  view  to  qualify  themselves  to  fill  vacancies  when  they 
occur  in  our  own  or  other  institutions. 

It  will,  I  hope,  be  understood  that  we  do  not  intend  to  discard  a 
single  one  of  the  various  important  methods  hitherto  adopted,  but, 
while  retaining  all  we  have  gained  in  the  past,  press  forward  in  the 
future,  our  motto  being,  "These  ought  ye  to  have  done  and  not  to 
leave  the  other  undone,"  and  we  are  not  without  hope  that  the  com- 
pliment we  pay  the  pure  oral  system  may  be  eventually  reciprocated 
so  that  the  fusion  that  is  going  on  in  all  elements  of  progress  in  this 
great  country  will  eventuate  in  bringing  all  teachers  of  the  deaf  to 
acknowledge  the  advantage  to  be  derived  from  the  combined  system. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  paper  is  "Comprehensive  Education  in 
its  Philosophy  and  Practice,"  by  Mr.  Gilbert  0.  Fay,  of  Hartford,  Con- 
necticut. 

comprehensive  education  in  its  philosophy  and  practice. 

In  hearing  education,  teachers  discuss  topics  before  their  pupils  or 
require  them  to  read  up  the  same  in  text-books,  and  later  to  repro- 
duce the  remembered  substance  in  language,  written  or  oral,  gener- 
ally the  latter.  Facility  of  speech,  an  extensive  diction,  exists  at  the 
outset.  A  deaf  child  is  not  best  taught  by  the  same  verbal  process, 
destitute  as  he  is,  or  nearly  so,  of  both  words  and  thoughts.  Such  a 
task  is  the  Egyptian  one  of  making  bricks  without  straw.  The  wiser 
teacher,  with  true  philosophy,  will  become  for  the  time  a  gesticulating 
mute  himself.     The  mute's  pantomime  he  does  not  shun  or  seek  to 


160         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

extirpate.  He  is  thankful  for  its  existence,  and  patiently  learns  to 
use  it,  that  thereby  he  may  lead  the  pupil  up  to  the  added  under- 
standing and  use  of  words  in  their  easiest  visible  form — the  dactylic, 
or  finger  spelled.  He.  becomes  a  child  himself,  even  a  mute,  that 
thereby  he  may  lead  his  pupils  up  to  and  into  their  kingdom  of 
heaven— written  and  oral  speech.  The  pupil,  encouraged  by  the  fel- 
lowship of  his  teacher,  will  work  along  this  new  line  of  language 
patiently,  happily,  hopefully,  successfully.  Not  a  single  pupil  will 
despair  or  fail.  The  script  of  the  school-room  and  the  type  of  the 
book  will  follow  in  close  alliance.  The  fingers,  in  decimal  system, 
will  count  and  calculate;  and  their  equivalents,  numerical  and  ver- 
bal, will  be  committed  to  memory.  Within  a  year,  the  pupil  will 
write  many  a  story  with  his  stock  of  words,  already  amounting  to  five 
or  six  hundred.  The  same  process,  kept  up,  will  conduct  him  subse- 
quently through  the  various  uses  of  the  vocabulary  of  common  life 
and  the  usual  list  of  studies  constituting  the  course.  Printed  language 
or  script,  previously  written,  will  be  the  preferred  medium  of  com- 
munication to  the  pupil  in  the  school-room.  Extempore  pictures, 
pantomime,  differing  in  no  philosophic  sense  from  the  pictures  of 
books,  will  be  freely  furnished  in  explanation  of  the  verbal  text. 
When  neither  print  nor  prepared  script  is  accessible,  dactylic  lan- 
guage will  be  employed.  But  out  of  the  school-room,  in  the  tide  of 
daily  life,  in  its  flood  of  events,  great  and  small,  in  its  business,  its 
amusements,  its  necessities,  its  exigencies,  verbal  speech  will  yield 
precedence  to  the  more  rapid  and  more  expressive  language  of  signs. 
Spontaneous  feeling  will  maintain  itself  against  all  precepts  of  teach- 
ers and  their  severest  repressive  discipline,  be  it  sweeping  or  petty. 

The  child's  first  learning  of  language  will  be  a  process  of  simple 
imitation.  Later,  when  ideas  have  increased  and  the  reasoning  fac- 
ulties have  measurably  awakened,  sentence  analysis  and  rules  of 
composition  will  be  profitably  introduced.  No  teacher,  however, 
should  forget  that  a  wide  vocabulary,  scanty  enough  at  the  best,  with 
simple  syntax,  very  simple,  is  preferable  to  longer  sentences  of  mis- 
used words.  Much  should  be,  may  be,  understanding^  read  that 
should  not  be  at  any  time  imitated.  The  wide  understanding  and 
flowing  facility  of  teachers,  and  the  analogy  of  composition  by  hear- 
ing pupils,  often  mislead  the  teacher  of  the  deaf  into  a  pace  and  range 
of  work  entirely  beyond  the  assimilating  capacity  of  his  pupils.  The 
right  use  of  qualifiers  and  idioms  is  slowly,  very  slowly,  acquired. 
Verbal  language  is  incessantly  lapsing.  Haste  will  break  up  a  grow- 
ing style,  really  correct,  into  a  chaos  of  shreds  and  patches. 

For  deaf  children  at  this  stage  there  is  no  adequate  literature  exist- 
ing for  the  occupation  of  their  leisure  hours.  So  called  children's 
books,  though  beautifully  illustrated,  are  decidedly  too  difficult  ver- 
bally for  deaf-mutes.  To  some  exceptional  pupils,  already  referred 
to,  the  editorals  of  the  daily  press  and  the  fictions  of  Dickens  are 
acceptable.  But  the  ordinary  deaf-mute  needs  at  first  books  and 
papers  upon  the  commonest  topics,  written  wholly  in  simple  sentences 
of  eight  or  ten  words.  Such  a  literature  is  indispensable  as  a  substi- 
tute and  equivalent  for  the  colloquial  speech  of  the  hearing.  The 
want  of  it  is  the  occasion  of  many  idle,  or  worse  than  idle,  hours 
among  the  deaf. 

Following  the  acquisition  of  verbal  language  in  its  simpler  and 
clearly  visible  forms  of  finger  spelling,  writing,  and  print,  the  com- 
prehensive teacher  will  also  undertake,  along  the  years,  as  a  part  of 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  161 

the  general  course,  and  with  daily  drill,  to  give  to  his  pupils  a  mastery 
of  the  vocal  equivalents  of  the  words  which  they  already  understand 
and  freely  use.  The  task  is  beset  with  extraordinary  difficulties,  and 
should  not  be  pushed  at  one  time  to  the  weariness  or  disgust  of  the 
pupil.  Not  hearing  his  own  voice  or  the  voice  of  others,  and  only 
conscious  of  certain  muscular  action  approved  by  his  teacher,  his 
difficulties  are  prodigious.  Gains  trifling  to  the  hearing  should  be 
thankfully  recognized  and  encouraged.  Every  deaf  child  can  learn 
a  few  words.  Many  can  learn  to  pronounce  sentences  fluently. 
With  advancing  education,  pupils  judiciously  handled  will  have  a 
growing  ambition  to  add  oral  speech  to  written.  Poor  articulation, 
broken  speech,  is  better  than  none.  The  ability  to  utter  single  words, 
to  go  no  farther,  adds  substantial  value  to  life.  To  make  room  for 
oral  speech,  the  range  of  study  in  general  knowledge  and  written 
language,  already  limited,  need  not,  should  not,  be  narrowed.  Vocal 
training  should  be  introduced  into,  or  rather  added  to,  the  course  of 
existing  education  in  fair  proportion;  and  it  should  occupy  a  part  of 
the  daily  school  time,  presumably,  of  every  pupil.  A  degree  of  pro- 
ficiency in  oral  speech  should  be  made  a  condition  of  graduation  in 
the  State  institutions  and  in  the  National  College.  To  secure  this 
result,  extension  of  time,  if  demanded,  should  be  granted. 

The  deaf,  out  of  school  hours,  should  be  encouraged  to  use  dactylic 
and  oral  speech,  not  passing  beyond  the  point  of  weariness.  If  they 
are  likely  to  become  proficient  in  oral  speech,  steady  encouragement 
and  its  superior  convenience  will  secure  its  permanent  use.  After 
they  have  acquired  the  correct  use  of  dactylic  speech,  they  should  not 
be  held  permanently  to  its  use.  If  unlikely  to  rise  to  the  easy  use  of 
oral  speech,  they  should  not  be  checked  in  their  inclination  to  think 
in  pantomime.  Its  celerity,  parallel  in  degree  to  oral  speech,  affords 
them,  in  thinking  at  least,  a  great  relief  from  the  tardy  pace  of  finger 
spelling,  be  it  ever  so  rapid  and  correct. 

Errors  of  proportion  have  divided  the  educators  of  the  deaf  into 
schools  of  opinion,  not  exactly  hostile,  but  certainly  separate  and 
narrow.  The  schools  of  France,  for  a  century,  and  subsequently  the 
schools  of  the  United  States,  while  theoretically  favorable  to  the 
teaching  of  articulation,  have  demonstrated  only  and  mainly,  through 
long  practice,  the  importance  and  possibilities  of  pantomime  and  the 
uses  of  the  manual  alphabet,  supplemented  by  written  speech.  They 
have  applied  these  instruments  with  great  skill  and  energy,  and  have 
produced  a  remarkable  body  of  silent  scholars,  easily  superior  in 
scholarship  to  anything  that  oralists  have  been  able  to  produce. 
French  and  American  schools,  true  to  their  traditions,  have  been 
backward,  however,  in  taking  up  and  applying,  with  equal  skill  and 
energy,  the  teaching  of  oral  speech.  Might  not  a  fraction  of  their 
silent  written  scholarships  have  been  well  exchanged  for  a  degree  of 
oral  skill  ?  Such  seems  to  be  their  own  present  conviction.  We  are 
now  witnessing  the  introduction  of  the  systematic  teaching  of  articu- 
lation into  all  the  prominent  institutions  of  Europe  and  America. 
And  the  pursuance  of  this  policy  has  exhibited  the  fact  that  the 
development  of  the  faculties  and  the  acquisition  of  verbal  speech  by 
pantomime,  by  finger  spelling,  and  by  books,  are  an  excellent  pre- 
liminary training,  the  full  peer  of  all  rival  expedients,  for  teaching 
associated  and  subsequent  oral  speech  itself.  The  pupil  has  some- 
thing to  say,  and  can  be  more  easily  taught  to  say  it.  The  present 
11d 


162  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

need  of  our  historic  schools  is  to  expand  their  scope  still  more  widely, 
so  as  to  include  and  attach  to  themselves  all  that  is  valuable  in  oral 
schools.  If  a  longer  school  period  shall  be  found  necessary  for  the 
best  results,  it  should  not,  will  not,  be  withheld. 

Another  school  of  opinion,  represented  by  the  schools  of  Germany, 
for  a  century,  and  by  a  few  recently  opened  in  the  United  States, 
ignores  the  pantomime  of  the  deaf,  and  uses  none.  It  omits  the 
finger  alphabet,  and  proposes  to  teach  the  deaf  at  the  start,  and  with  no 
intermediate  step,  oral  speech  itself,  and  by  it  all  branches  of  desir- 
able knowledge.  Though  opposed  to  the  use  of  extempore  sign  pict- 
ures, it  uses  all  printed  pictures  freely.  It  omits  evidently  and  rejects 
such  illustrations  as  the  pupil  is  likely  to  imitate  and  to  incorporate 
into  signs  of  his  own.  It  is  communicating  instruction  with  great 
and  increasing  skill,  and  to  a  proportion  of  pupils  steadily  enlarging. 
The  partially  deaf  and  those  who  have  heard  in  early  years  succeed 
from  the  start.  An  additional  number,  some  of  them  totally  deaf 
from  birth,  succeed  to  a  limited  extent,  practically  useful.  A  large 
number  do  not  acquire  it  sufficiently  to  be  able  to  rely  upon  it,  singu- 
larly evanescent,  in  after  life.  At  school  they  habitually  invent  and 
illicitly  use  a  gesture  language  for  social  relief,  and  feel  more  confi- 
dence in  their  pencil  than  in  their  voice.  The  time  spent  in  oral 
teaching  has  crowded  out  some  topics  taught  in  the  sign  schools.  The 
range  of  written  scholarship,  including  English  composition  and  the 
ability  to  read  newspapers,  is  considerably  lower.  This  deficiency  is 
justified  by  those  who  are  responsible  for  it  by  the  compensating 
value  of  the  oral  speech,  acquired  or  attempted. 

These  schools  have  yet  to  learn  that,  in  omitting  the  use  of  panto- 
mime and  finger  spelling,  they  ignore  the  uneducated  mute's  best 
friend.  They  take  away  a  ladder,  the  only  ladder  known,  by  which 
all  the  deaf  can  easily  rise.  They  require  the  mute,  scorning  all 
climbing  steps  and  gradual  approaches,  to  clear  at  one  bound  the 
chasm  that  separates  the  deaf  from  the  hearing.  They  force  the 
recruit  at  once  upon  frowning  breastworks.  They  apply  a  method 
derived  from  the  functions  of  the  hearing  mind,  and  not  at  all  from  the 
essential,  the  universal  functions  of  the  mind  of  the  deaf.  Attempt- 
ing the  best  things  for  all  the  deaf  by  a  method  heroic,  they  succeed 
with  a  small  number,  less  than  half,  and,  holding  no  middle  ground, 
substantially,  culpably  fail  with  a  considerable  number.  The  bril- 
liancy of  the  operation  is  clouded  by  its  frequently  fatal  issue. 

These  schools,  excellent,  ambitious,  and  ably  officered,  need,  in 
behalf  of  many  of  their  pupils,  to  incorporate  into  the  early  years  of 
their  course  all  that  is  valuable  in  the  sign  schools.  The  removal  of 
intervening  barriers  will  make  the  two  jarring  methods  friends — 
astonished  to  remember  that  they  ever  differed.  Pantomime  and 
finger  spelling,  as  jealously  excluded  now  from  oral  schools  as  the 
"long  keels  of  the  Northmen,"  will  prove  a  boon,  a  help,  and  not  a 
hindrance  to  ail  their  pupils.  They  will  all  easily  rise,  and  rapidly,  to 
the  plane  of  written  speech;  and  those  capable  of  taking  the  higher 
step,  the  last,  the  crowning  oral  one,  will  not  be  the  less  able  for  hav- 
ing a  broader  elementary  base. 

To  secure  the  best  results  in  existing  institutions,  sign  and  oral,  a 
degree  of  reorganization  will  be  necessary,  gradual  or  summary.  It 
will  involve  in  sign  schools  the  adding  of  the  teaching  of  articulation 
to  the  daily  round  of  the  duties  of  existing  teachers,  or  the  employ- 
ment of  additional  articulation  teachers.    In  oral  schools  it  will 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS    OF   THE   DEAF.  163 

involve  the  added  use  of  pantomime  and  the  manual  alphabet  by 
existing  teachers,  or  the  employment  of  additional  teachers  who  can 
use  them.  New  institutions  need  not  be  embarrassed  by  servile  imi- 
tation of  institutions  time  honored  simply.  The  line  of  progress  is 
not  necessarily  a  royal  line,  a  dynasty.  Errors  may  be  transmitted, 
congenitally  so.  New  institutions  should  have  the  enterprise  and 
courage  to  select  and  to  combine  wisely,  with  at  least  one  eye  to  the 
future.  A  great  desideratum  in  the  equipment  of  a  school  so  enlarged 
is  a  collection  of  books,  a  library  of  them,  composed  in  shortest  words 
and  in  syntax  extremely  simple,  with  the  syllabification  and  all 
silent  letters  clearly  indicated. 

It  remains  for  our  country,  reverential  and  fearless,  inventive  and 
aspiring,  and  abounding  in  resources  of  money  and  of  brain,  to 
organize,  to  perfect,  and  to  sustain,  an  eclectic,  a  combined,  an  Amer- 
ican system  of  deaf-mute  education— a  system  that  shall  be  true  to 
the  nature  of  the  deaf,  and  that,  using  all  arts,  shall  conduct  them 
gently,  hopefully,  happily,  and  within  a  reasonable  time,  up  to  the 
plane  of  oral  speech.  Some  will  talk  in  halting  tones.  Some  will 
pause  midway  at  written  speech,  and  that  in  syntax  poorly  ordered. 
But  all  will,  by  graduated  process,  achieve  results  proportionate 
directly  to  their  school  time  and  to  their  receptive  power. 

The  Chairman:  The  subject  is  now  before  the  convention  for  dis- 
cussion. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  would  like  to  ask  a  few  questions  in  reference  to  this 
subject,  which,  perhaps,  more  particularly  refer  to  Mr.  Crouter's  paper. 
I  desire  to  ask  Mr.  Crouter  if  he,  in  receiving  pupils  into  his  institu- 
tion, first  introduced  them  into  the  oral  department? 
Mr.  Crouter:  No,  sir. 

Mr.  Noyes:  How  do  you  know  who  are  suitable  subjects  for  the 
oral  classes? 

Mr.  Crouter:  They  are  all  received  into  the  institution.  There 
is  but  one  institution,  and  they  become  pupils  of  it.  Those  who  are 
semi-mute  or  semi-deaf  are  sent  to  the  oral  department.  Then  there 
are  some  bright  deaf  pupils  come  to  us  that  I  think  possibly  may  be 
taught  in  that  way,  and  they  are  also  sent  to  the  oral  department  at 
once.     At  least,  we  did  that  last  year. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Are  you  always  able,  during  the  first  week  after  their 

admission,  to  determine  who  are  proper  subjects  for  the  oral  classes? 

Mr.  Crouter:  Not  in  cases  of  congenital  mutes. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Did  you  ever  discover,  after  years  of  trial  in  a  sign 

class,  that  the  pupil,  almost  of  a  sudden,  developed  an  ability  to 

speak? 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  presume  there  are  such  cases. 
Mr.  Noyes:  Can  you  suggest  to  this  convention  some  method  by 
which  the  Superintendent  or  Principal  can  be  quite  sure  of  deter- 
mining those  who  are  proper  subjects  for  the  oral  classes?  Suppose 
we  have  thirty  pupils  admitted  at  the  opening  of  the  term.  Within 
the  first  ten  days  of  that  term,  how  can  we  be  sure  that  we  have 
obtained  for  the  oral  classes  all  those  that  ought  to  be  in  there? 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  the  case  of  those  who  are  congenitally  deaf,  there 
is  but  one  way  in  which  the  matter  could  be  finally  decided,  and  that 
would  be  by  giving  them  all  oral  instruction. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Your  theory  is  that  all  should  be  put  under  an  oral 
teacher,  and  be  kept  there? 
Mr.  Crouter:  No,  sir;  I  made  no  such  statement. 


164  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

Mr.  Noyes:  That  this  hourly  drill  in  articulation  was  worthless? 

Mr.  Crouter:  Yes,  sir;  I  think  so.  I  think  that  the  half-hour 
drill,  in  cases  where  deafness  is  congenital,  is  almost  useless. 

Mr.  Noyes:  How  can  you  determine? 

Mr.  Crouter:  From  the  results  of  our  past  experience.  Take  a 
boy  who  comes  in  the  institution  for  the  first  time,  the  only  way  in 
which  the  matter  could  be  decided  would  be  to  try  him  with  oral 
instruction. 

Mr.  Noyes:  That  is  your  method,  then — half  oral  and  half  manual 
instruction? 

Mr.  Crouter:  No,  sir.  I  should  give  him  oral  instruction,  and 
have  done  with  it.  Not  both  oral  and  manual.  I  should  put  him 
into  the  class  of  oral  instruction. 

Last  fall  we  received  into  our  institution  some  sixty  pupils,  I  think. 
There  was  a  large  oral  class,  composed  wholly  of  congenital  mutes,  in 
the  main  institution,  under  the  instruction  of  Miss  Richards,  who 
can  give  an  account  of  her  work.    Those  were  all  new  pupils. 

I  will  say  further,  that  before  selecting  these  pupils  for  Miss  Rich- 
ards, the  best  of  those  who  were  congenitally  deaf  were  sent  to  the 
oral  branch,  and  Miss  Richards'  class  was  made  up  of  those  who 
remained.  There  were  two  classes,  of  some  twenty  pupils,  sent  to  the 
oral  branch;  first  a  class  of  semi-deaf  and  semi-mutes,  and  then  a 
class  of  congenital  mutes;  the  latter  class  consisting  of  those  who  were 
particularly  bright,  coming  from  intelligent  families,  young  and  more 
hopeful  cases;  they  were  sent  down,  and  of  those  who  remained  some 
ten  were  selected  and  placed  under  Miss  Richards'  instruction.  All 
of  the  rest,  consisting  of  a  number  who  were  congenitally  deaf,  and 
too  old  to  begin  oral  work,  they  were  placed  under  a  sign  teacher 
alone. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  want  the  principle  by  which  you  make  this  selection, 
to  determine  who  are  proper  subjects  for  sign  classes. 

Mr.  Crouter:  The  ones  that  were  placed  under  sign  instruction, 
a  class  of  sixteen  pupils,  were  all  pupils  that  were  past  twelve  years 
of  age,  and  I  did  not  think  it  was  advisable  to  place  such  children 
under  oral  instruction.  It  would  be  an  experiment  which  I  did  not 
care  to  make. 

Mr.  Noyes:  My  own  theory  has  been  that  taking  pupils  and  train- 
ing them  for  half  an  hour  a  day,  in  a  short  time  you  can  determine 
who  are  proper  subjects  for  articulation,  and  who  are  not.  But  I  have 
yet  to  meet  the  Superintendent  or  teacher  who  can  take  a  glance  at 
thirty  green,  uncultivated,  and  unsophisticated  pupils,  and  can  select, 
right  off,  those  who  belong  to  the  sign  class  and  those  who  belong  to 
the  oral  class.  I  have  had  pupils  who  at  the  end  of  the  second  year, 
when  I  thought  they  were  not  competent  for  articulation,  sometimes 
suddenly  become  subjects  for  the  oral  classes. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  do  not  think  there  will  be  any  question  about  the 
advisability  of  attempting  to  instruct  orally  the  children  born  deaf 
mutes,  who  come  to  us  at  the  age  of  sixteen.  I  think  there  would  be 
no  serious  attempt  made  in  our  oral  schools  to  instruct  a  boy  or  girl 
born  deaf,  who  comes  to  school  at  sixteen.  It  would  be  a  useless 
waste  of  time.  There  is  but  one  way  in  which  that  question  can  be 
answered,  and  that  would  be,  to  give  all  children  upon  entering  our 
institutions  oral  instructions;  and  then  when  you  are  satisfied  that  it 
is  a  failure  give  them  sign  instruction. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  suppose  that  all  children  when  they  enter  our  schools 


OF    AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  165 

ought  to  be  sifted;  and  during  that  sifting  we  determine  who  ought 
to  be  put  into  the  sign  classes  and  who  into  the  oral  classes.  And 
that  can  be  done  by  simply  introducing  all  of  the  children  into  the 
oral  classes  and  giving  them  a  test;  and  then,  when  dissecting  these 
oral  classes,  determining  who  can  be  properly  continued  in  oral  work. 
And  this  is  a  question  1  would  like  to  have  come  before  us;  whether 
it  is  the  proper  way,  to  introduce  every  child  into  the  oral  depart- 
ment first,  and  retain  him  there  until  we  are  satisfied.  When  I  had 
charge  of  blind  children  in  our  school,  we  almost  invariably  held  to 
the  principle  that  all  of  the  blind  children  should  learn  music.  Some 
of  our  boys  I  verily  believe  could  not  grind  an  organ  with  any  taste, 
and  they  had  to  give  it  up.  They  had  no  tune;  and  we  took  them 
from  the  department,  sometimes  after  two  or  three  years  trial.  In 
regard  to  deaf  and  dumb  institutions,  shall  we  put  all  of  these  chil- 
dren, whether  five  or  twenty  years  old,  into  the  oral  department,  and 
then  simply  sift  out  those  who  belong  in  the  sign  department,  after 
we  have  had  a  fair  and  satisfactory  trial?  This  is  a  question  I  would 
like  very  much  to  hear  discussed. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  I  have  listened  with  great  interest  to  the  question 
just  asked  by  Professor  Noyes,  of  Minnesota,  as  I  have  also  to  the 
papers  presented  this  afternoon.  It  seems  to  me  that  in  the  grand 
movement  of  deaf-mute  education  in  America  we  have  made  history 
rapidly  to-day.  I  do  not  remember  to  have  read,  nor  to  have  heard 
in  any  convention  or  conference  which  it  has  been  my  privilege  to 
attend,  thoughts  expressed  which  seemed  to  me  to  mean  more  in  the 
interest  of  the  widest  and  best  teaching  of  the  deaf,  than  those  which 
have  been  presented  to  this  convention  this  afternoon  in  the  able 
papers  which  have  been  read.  It  is  with  no  little  pleasure,  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, that  I  see  strengthening  indications  of  a  certain  harmony  and 
spirit  that  is  ready  and  willing  to  adopt  what  is  good,  and  equally 
ready  and  willing  to  reject  what  is  found  to  be  less  valuable.  And  I 
see,  Mr.  President,  in  the  sentiments  of  these  papers  a  prophecy, 
voiced  by  him  whom  hereafter  I  shall  look  upon  in  a  sense  as  the 
prophet  of  deaf-mute  instruction  in  this  country,  my  friend  Dr.  Fay, 
of  Hartford,  who,  with  keen  and  far-looking  ken  has  grasped  what  is 
to  come  in  the  future.  And  I  congratulate  him,  while  I  equally  con- 
gratulate my  friend,  Professor  Crouter,  on  his  presentation  of  practi- 
cal work  done  in  Philadelphia,  and  my  old  friend,  Dr.  Peet,  on  his 
philosophical  presentation  on  the  general  subject  of  the  combination 
which  is  to  bring  out  in  the  future  such  grand  results.  I  look  to  Dr. 
Fay  as  our  prophet  for  the  future.  [Applause.]  And,  Mr.  President, 
he  has  given  voice  to  thoughts  that  have  rested  in  my  mind  during 
these  days  that  we  have  been  together  here,  which  I  have  not  time  to 
formulate,  and  which  I  should  not  have  put  in  shape  with  the  pre- 
cision, strength,  and  vigor  that  he  has  been  able  to  express  them. 
But  when  he  says  that  the  day  is  coming  when,  in  the  oral  schools, 
signs  will  be  used,  and  the  manual  alphabet  will  be  used,  and  there 
will  be  teachers,  either  those  who  now  teach  orally  who  will  learn 
signs  and  the  manual  alphabet,  or  others  who  will  come  in  to  help 
them,  I  congratulate  him  on  his  prophetic  vision,  for  it  is  a  dream  in* 
which  I  have  indulged,  but  which  I  have  hardly  dared  to  express. 
But,  Mr.  President,  I  will  venture,  now  that  my  friend  Dr.  Fay  has 
gone  forward  in  the  van,  to  follow  him,  and  say  that  I  believe  that 
no  teacher  of  the  deaf,  whether  a  teacher  in  an  oral  school  or  not, 


166  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

is  fully  equipped  for  his  or  her  work  until  he  or  she  is  proficient  in 
the  language  of  signs  and  in  the  use  of  the  manual  alphabet. 

I  am  not  expressing  this  idea  on  the  spur  of  the  moment,  or  wholly 
at  the  suggestion  of  Dr.  Fay.  For  in  the  school  at  Washington,  which 
forms  a  part  of  the  Columbia  Institution,  which  embraces  the  College 
and  the  School,  we  have  a  teacher  of  articulation  who  was  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  a  teacher  of  the  old  or  the  sign  method.  And  I  have 
watched  for  six  or  seven  years  the  work  of  this  teacher,  who  has  been 
devoting  all  of  her  time  to  the  teaching  of  speech  and  lip  reading  to 
the  deaf;  and  I  am  certain  that  on  occasions — I  may  say  almost  with- 
out number— I  have  seen  her  take  the  hand  of  her  pupils,  or  the 
tongue  and  lips  of  her  pupils,  and  carry  them  lightly  over  difficulties 
in  speech,  because  she  knew  how  to  reach  them  by  signs.  [Great  ap- 
plause.] 

I  am  speaking  from  experience.  I  have  seen  results  among  the 
pupils  of  our  Kendall  Green  School,  with  regard  to  which  I  have  no 
disposition  to  indulge  in  that  American  weakness  of  boasting — I  have 
seen  pupils  there  attain  results  under  the  instruction  of  this  teacher, 
who  was  an  adept  in  the  sign  language  and  ready  and  nimble  in  the 
finger  alphabet,  that  has  astonished  me.  Up  to  the  present  time  we 
are  teaching  articulation  practically  as  an  accomplishment.  I  mean 
to  say  that  the  pupils  of  our  different  classes  have  gone  out  of  their 
classes  for  half  an  hour  or  more  to  the  instruction  of  our  articulation 
teacher.  I  have  seen  results  obtained  among  our  pupils,  even  among 
congenital  mutes,  which  I  venture  to  say,  in  all  humility,  will  com- 
pare favorably  with  some  of  the  results  that  would  be  called  above 
the  average  in  purely  oral  schools  where  the  pupil  has  teaching  all 
of  the  time. 

I  commend  most  earnestly  to  the  serious  consideration  of  those  of 
our  friends  who  are  present  here,  the  second  of  Dr.  Fay's  suggestions, 
that  the  teacher  of  the  deaf,  no  matter  what  is  his  or  her  province, 
ought  to  know  the  language  of  signs.  I  will  linger  for  a  moment  on 
this  point,  to  give  a  reason  or  two  why  I  make  this  recommendation. 
No  one  knows  more  certainly  than  the  teachers  of  the  oral  schools 
themselves,  that  deaf  children  will  use  a  language  of  signs.  They 
will  use  it  on  occasion.  They  do  resort  to  it;  they  do  fall  back  upon 
it,  no  matter  how  much  attempt  is  made  to  distract  them  from  the 
use  of  language  of  signs.  Therefore,  it  seems  to  me,  for  this  reason  if 
for  no  other,  that  the  teachers  in  these  schools  should  be  adepts  in 
the  sign  language;  not  merely  able  to  use  natural  gestures  and  pan- 
tomime, to  illustrate  what  is  said  in  the  school-room,  but  to  know  all 
of  the  language  that  their  pupils  know.  And  it  is  a  fact,  I  believe, 
in  many  oral  schools,  that  pupils  go  in  and  out  and  use  a  language 
which  is,  to  a  certain  extent,  not  possessed  by  their  parents  or 
teachers.  I  have  been  told  that  they  can  successfully  impose  on  their 
teachers,  who  know  nothing  of  it. 

I  will  take  no  longer  time  to  discuss  this  point  to  urge  oral  teachers 
to  learn  the  sign  language.  As  great  an  oral  teacher  as  Graham  Bell 
has  told  me  within  a  year  that  he  wished  he  knew  the  sign  language; 
and  he  has  promised  to  come  to  me  and  learn.  [Applause.]  So  I 
have  the  highest  authority  for  urging  oral  teachers  to  learn  the  sign 
language. 

Mr.  President,  when  I  arose  I  had  in  mind  many  more  suggestions, 
especially  one  in  the  direction  of  a  question  asked  by  Mr.  Noyes  as 
to  how  it  is  to  be  determined  who  is  to  be  taught  speech  in  our 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  167 

schools.  I  am  prepared  to  cover  that  point  and  one  other  by  a  pre- 
amble and  a  couple  of  resolutions.  It  is  rather  unusual  for  us  to 
adopt  resolutions  in  this  convention.  Thought  and  discussion  here 
are  free,  and  we  have  rarely  attempted  to  bind  any  one  by  resolu- 
tions. And  we  do  not  attempt  to  bind  closely  the  opinions  of  anv 
one.  But  I  offer  this  preamble  and  resolution  in  the  interest  of  a 
sentiment;  but  it  is  a  sentiment  which  I  think  it  is  worth  while  to 
cultivate  and  strengthen  by  all  the  efforts  in  our  power  in  this  coun- 
try. For  it  is  a  matter  of  great  delight  to  me,  as  years  have  gone  by, 
and  as  convention  after  convention  has  been  held,  that  we  have  been 
able  to  bring  together  in  this  body  of  American  instructors  of  the 
deaf,  men  and  women  who  have  at  times  held  opinions  almost 
violently  opposed  to  each  other;  those  who  have  been  sometimes 
urging  methods  and  pressing  measures  that  were  antagonistic  and 
almost  hostile;  and  it  is  the  glory  of  this  organization  that  we  have 
worked  now  for  twenty  years  nearly,  since  our  canvassing  the  associa- 
tion in  1868,  with  a  harmony  of  purpose  and  with  a  friendliness  of 
spirit  that  challenges  the  admiration  of  the  nations  of  the  world.  I 
believe  that  that  very  sentiment  is  worthy  of  cultivation;  for  I  see 
in  its  prevalence  alone,  when  that  sentiment  is  held  to  and  allowed 
finally  to  prevail,  that  the  prophecy  of  my  friend  Dr.  Fay  can  be 
fulfilled.  If  we  are  antagonistic  to  each  other — at  swords  points — all 
of  the  time  holding  up  the  merits  of  rival  methods,  we  reach  little 
good.  We  bring  forward  our  methods;  they  differ,  and  great  inde- 
pendence of  thought  and  opinion  is  allowed.  We  hear  what  our 
friends  have  to  say,  and  they  hear  what  we  have  to  say;  and  we  go 
home  with  the  seeds  which  they  have  sown  in  our  minds,  which  will 
bear  fruit  in  the  future.  And  so  we  go  forward  in  the  work  which  I 
feel  to  be  a  grand  and  noble  work  with  a  grand  and  noble  spirit. 
And  so  I  have  ventured  to  formulate  an  expression  of  opinion  which 
I  think  this  convention  certainly,  if  I  have  any  appreciation  of  the 
sentiment  of  its  members,  even  those  who  differ  as  to  method,  will 
be  able  to  unanimously  subscribe  to.  I  think  it  will  be  a  sort  of  cove- 
nant, if  they  do  subscribe  to  it,  each  to  the  other,  of  mutual  respect 
to  those  who  have  their  different  opinions,  and  to  the  desire  to  give 
and  receive  at  all  points  where  it  is  possible. 

Whereas,  The  experience  of  many  years  in  the  instruction  of  the  deaf  has  plainly 
shown  that  among  the  members  of  this  class  of  persons  great  differences  exist  in  mental 
and  physical  conditions,  and  in  capacity  for  improvement,  making  results  easily  possible 
in  certain  cases  which  are  practically  and  sometimes  actually  unattainable  in  others,  these 
differences  suggesting  widely  different  treatment  with  different  individuals ;  it  is,  there- 
fore, 

Resolved,  That  the  system  of  instruction  existing  at  present  in  America  commends  itself 
to  the  world,  for  the  reason  that  its  tendency  is  to  include  all  known  methods  and  expe- 
dients which  have  been  found  to  be  of  value'  in  the  education  of  the  deaf,  while  it  allows 
diversity  and  independence  of  action,  and  works  at  the  same  time  harmoniously,  aiming 
at  the  attainment  of  an  object  common  to  all. 

Resolved,  That  earnest  and  persistent  endeavors  should  be  made  in  every  school  for  the 
deaf  to  teach  every  pupil  to  speak  and  read  from  the  lips,  and  that  such  efforts  should  be 
abandoned  only  when  it  is  plainly  evident  that  the  measure  of  success  attained  does  not 
justify  the  necessary  amount  of  labor. 

I  trust  that  these  resolutions  may  be  adopted  by  the  convention 
without  dissent.  I  should  be  glad  to  have  them  discussed,  and  any 
suggestions  made  with  reference  to  them  that  may  seem  proper  to  the 
members  of  the  convention.  I  offer  this  preamble  and  these  resolu- 
tions for  consideration  at  the  present  time. 


168         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

The  Chairman:  The  resolutions  are  before  the  convention.  Is 
there  a  second? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  expected  to  be  able  to  second  these  resolutions 
most  heartily;  and  I  can  second  the  second  resolution  most  heartily, 
with  the  proviso  that  these  children  who  are  given  to  articulation 
teachers  for  trial  should  be  given  to  articulation  teachers  who  are 
trained  for  the  work,  and  not  to  novices,  before  saying  it  is  a  failure. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  I  accept  the  proviso. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  Because  in  my  short  experience  as  a  teacher  I 
have  not  only  known  such  things  to  be  done,  but  I  feel  it  my  duty  as 
an  advocate  of  the  articulation  method  exclusively  to  put  that  pro- 
viso in.     With  that  proviso  I  heartily  second  the  motion. 

Mr.  Gillespie,  of  Nebraska:  I  am  in  favor  of  the  resolutions,  and 
will  offer  an  amendment  to  the  second  resolution:  that  a  general  test 
be  made,  and  that  those  who  are  found  to  have  sufficient  hearing  to 
distinguish  sounds,  shall  be  taught  aurally. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  I  will  also  accept  that. 

The  resolution  was  then  put  to  vote,  and  carried  unanimously. 

Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Gallaudet:  1  always  rise  with  diffidence  among 
the  practical  educators,  because  I  have  been  so  long  out  of  the  details 
of  the  school-room.  We  have  had  this  subject  up  in  various  ways. 
I  simply  arise  to  repeat  what  has  already  been  said;  that,  in  the  first 
place,  those  who  hear  and  speak  know  that  the  sound  of  the  human 
voice  is,  perhaps,  the  most  effective  instrument  by  which  we  produce 
that  inner  thrill  on  which  we  build  up  the  subsequent  education  of 
the  child.  How  much  more  significant  are  the  ideas  of  a  letter  com- 
ing from  one  whose  voice  we  know.  The  voice  comes  to  us  as  we 
read  the  words  of  the  letter  from  some  distant  friend;  and  it  is  that 
remembrance  of  the  voice  which  brings  to  the  eye,  perhaps,  the 
unbidden  tear,  or  swells  the  emotions  of  the  heart.  The  orator  who 
knows  how  to  mold  his  voice,  is  one  who  knows  how  to  sway  the 
heart,  the  mind,  and  conscience  of  his  listeners.  Where  is  the  sub- 
stitute for  the  sound  of  the  human  voice?  The  motion  of  the  lips 
is  a  very  feeble  substitute.  Spelling  out  the  English  words  and  sen- 
tences is  all  very  well  as  practice,  but  it  is  a  feeble  substitute;  and  so 
is  writing  out  one's  thoughts  on  the  slate.  I  appeal  to  my  semi-mute 
friends,  if  they  cannot  answer  this  question;  if  they  do  not  know  in 
the  innermost  recesses  of  their  soul,  that  they  need  this  language  of 
motion;  that  they  need  these  signs,  thrown  out  with  the  expression 
of  the  countenance  as  those  who  hear  me  speak  and  throw  out  these 
sounds.  We  do  not  spell  the  words,  and  we  do  not  think  how  they 
look.  We  throw  out  sounds,  one  after  another,  in  common  conversa- 
tion that  touch  the  inner  life.  And  I  believe,  from  my  own  expe- 
rience from  my  earliest  childhood,  that  we  need  this  language  of 
motion— another  language.  It  is  not  the  English  language,  and  has 
no  connection  with  it.  Those  of  us  who  have  used  it  for  years,  know 
that  we  do  not  speak  the  English  language  when  we  are  addressing 
deaf-mutes.  We  are  trying  to  throw  a  flood  of  light  into  their  minds; 
therefore  I  make  this  simple  plea,  that  persons  may  think  of  it,  and 
see  where  the  substitute  is  for  the  sound  of  the  human  voice,  if  it  is 
not  in  the  judicious  use  of  this  instrument,  which  we  call  our  sign 
language.    [Applause.] 

Mr.  Gillespie,  of  Nebraska,  here  took  the  chair. 

Dr.  Gillett,  of  Illinois:  Mr.  Chairman  and  ladies  and  gentlemen, 
I  have  no  lengthly  remarks  to  make  at  this  time.     I  think  the  reso- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  169 

lutions  that  have  been  adopted  pretty  fairly  express  my  views  upon 
this  general  subject.  I  am  apprehensive  that  many  of  us  may  not 
attach  all  the  importance  to  even  an  imperfect  articulation  and  an 
imperfect  power  of  lip  reading  that  it  deserves. 

We  have  not  made  any  Daniel  Websters  in  speech  or  any  Jennie 
Linds  in  music  among  our  pupils,  either  in  the  oral  institutions  or  in 
the  sign  institutions  of  this  country.  But  I  have  seen  enough  of  even 
a  very  limited  amount  of  articulation  and  lip  reading  in  the  seven- 
teen years  that  I  have  been  in  the  Illinois  institution  to  know  that  it 
is  of  very  great  value,  and  ought  not  by  any  means  to  be  neglected  or 
ignored. 

The  first  paper  read  to  us  this  afternoon  was  one  that  very  greatly 
interested  me  and  brought  back  to  my  mind  some  of  my  earliest 
experiences  when  we  first  embarked  in  the  endeavor  to  teach  the  deaf 
to  use  articulation  and  to  acquire  the  art  of  lip  reading.  I  went  over 
pretty  much  all  of  the  ground  in  a  practical  experience  that  Professor 
Crouter  has  described  as  the  scheme  that  he  has  laid  down  for  him- 
self and  for  the  Philadelphia  institution  during  the  next  few  years. 
It  was  what  seemed  to  me  eminently  reasonable  and  natural.  But 
yet  I  found  as  I  advanced  in  it,  and  as  Professor  Crouter  will  find  as  he 
advances  in  it,  as  a  matter  of  practical  work,  difficulties  that  had  not 
been  anticipated.  The  scheme  works  well  for  a  year  and  it  may  work 
well  for  two  years;  but  I  call  Professor  Crouter  to  take  notice  this  after- 
noon that  when  he  comes  to  carry  out  that  scheme  four  or  five  years, 
when  he  finds  that  he  has  an  institution  within  an  institution,  a 
classification  within  a  classification;  that  he  will  find  practical  dif- 
ficulties that  it  will  be  almost  impossible  for  him  to  successfully 
overcome. 

This  matter  of  classification  is  not  by  any  means  to  be  ignored.  It 
is  one  of  those  practical  points  that  gives  strength  and  efficiency  to  an 
institution.  And  the  more  your  classification  is  perfected  the  more 
effective  and  efficient  will  be  the  work  that  you  will  succeed  in  carry- 
ing out  among  your  pupils.  Anything  that  tends  to  break  up  that 
classification,  or  anything  that  tends  to  prevent  reclassification  as  cir- 
cumstances make  it  necessary,  is  to  be  avoided.  The  classification 
can  be  modified  all  of  the  time.  You  may  have  a  perfect  classifica- 
tion to-day  in  your  school,  and  next  week  you  will  have  a  different 
one.  You  cannot  take  five  hundred,  or  one  hundred,  or  fifty,  or  twenty 
youths  and  keep  them  exactly  together  in  the  same  grade  of  improve- 
ment, and  move  them  along  evenly  for  one  week.  Your  classification 
will  be  modified  every  day.  And  the  wise  Superintendent  will,  as  far 
as  it  is  possible  for  him  to  do,  in  view  of  other  circumstances,  from 
time  to  time  modify  his  classification.  Thus  only  can  he  best  effect 
the  work  to  be  brought  about. 

And  now,  Mr.  Chairman,  on  this  general  subject  before  us  this  after- 
noon, we  should  be  very  careful  not  to  fix  our  minds,  and  especially 
not  to  fix  our  hearts,  upon  anything,  as  that  we  are  determined  to  carry 
out.  Why,  this  profession  of  teaching  the  deaf  and  dumb  is  but  in 
its  infancy.  The  very  children  of  the  father  of  it  in  this  country 
are  still  with  us.  The  men  and  women  are  present  here  on  this 
floor,  who  remember  to  have  made  in  real  life  the  acquaintance  of 
that  noble  benefactor,  Thomas  Hopkins  Gallaudet,  who  first  brought 
it  to  this  country.  We  are  only  planting  the  seeds,  only  laying  that 
foundation.  And  it  is  eminently  wise  that  we  so  plant  these  seeds 
that  the  fruit  shall  be  of  that  character  that  shall  be  best  for  those 


170         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

that  follow  us,  and  that  the  foundation  shall  be  laid  so  that  those 
who  come  after  us  may  improve  on  what  we  have  done. 

I  stand  here  to-day  and  feel  proud  to  believe  that  we  have  advanced 
in  a  good  degree  upon  what  the  fathers  gave  us;  and  I  am  bound  to 
say  in  this  presence,  that  when  I  come  to  consider  all  the  discussions, 
and  all  the  controversies,  and  all  the  new  methods  proposed  here  and 
there,  in  Europe  and  America,  for  the  betterment  of  the  methods  of 
instruction  that  we  pursue,  I  am  bound  to  say  in  candor  and  truth 
that  I  feel  more  and  more  the  wisdom  of  the  fathers  in  the  methods 
that  they  brought  to  us,  and  that  have  become  more  and  more  in 
vogue  among  us. 

And  now  I  am  glad  that  upon  this  Pacific  slope  we  find  such  a 
cosmopolitan  gathering  as  is  here  to-day.  There  was  one  interested 
in  an  institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  who  only  a  few  days  ago 
came  to  us  from  across  the  broad  Pacific;  there  is  another  here  who 
only  a  few  weeks  ago  came  to  us  from  across  the  broad  Atlantic;  and 
here  we  are  from  all  parts  of  this  great  country  of  ours.  And  as  we 
come  from  the  mountain  and  the  prairie,  from  the  hillside  and  the 
plain,  all  bent  on  one  purpose  and  seeking  one  aim,  so  we  come  all 
ready  to  surrender  anything  that  we  may  be  shown  to  be  defective,  and 
glad  to  take  hold  of  anything  that  may  promise  good.     [Applause.] 

Now,  Mr.  Chairman,  it  is  not  to  be  denied  that  there  are  some  deaf- 
mutes  who  can  be  taught  to  speak;  and  I  wish  here  to  say,  in  the  fear 
of  God,  that  he  is  not  a  friend  of  the  deaf-mute  who  throws  anything 
in  his  way  that  will  prevent  his  acquiring  speech  or  the  art  of  lip 
reading.  [Applause.]  And  that  finds  a  hearty  response  in  the  heart 
of  every  individual  here  present.  Let  us  bring  them  as  rapidly  as  we 
can  to  approximate  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  plane  upon  which  we 
ourselves  find  ourselves,  and  to  restore  them  as  quickly  as  possible 
and  as  nearly  as  possible  to  the  normal  condition  of  men  and  women. 

Mr.  Clark,  of  Arkansas:  I  agree  very  fully  with  what  Professor 
Noyes  has  said;  that  he  did  not  see  how  any  man  can  take  sixty  deaf- 
mutes  and  tell  which  ones  to  put  in  the  articulation  class,  and  which 
to  put  in  the  sign  class.  When  I  began  in  Arkansas  last  fall,  I  was 
confronted  with  just  about  sixty  deaf-mutes,  of  whose  power  of  speech 
and  use  of  articulation  I  was  absolutely  ignorant,  as  I  was  of  every- 
thing else  in  that  institution,  our  articulation  teacher  having  resigned 
within  two  or  three  days  of  the  beginning  of  the  term.  But  I  had  a 
very  good  teacher  of  articulation,  and  in  consultation  with  him,  we 
decided  that  the  best  plan  was  to  make  a  test  with  every  pupil  in  that 
institution  of  their  capacity  to  receive  instruction  in  articulation, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  of  their  hearing.  And  it  was  not  such  a  tre- 
mendous job.  There  were  a  great  many  of  them  that  in  five  minutes 
you  could  tell  that  they  should  go  into  the  articulation  class,  or  should 
not.  We  did  test  them.  Some  of  them  went  to  the  articulation  class 
every  day  for  a  month,  others  for  two  months,  and  some  for  three  or 
four  months,  and  some  of  them  were  taken  out  at  the  beginning  of 
the  review  work  in  the  other  classes,  and  I  think  there  are  still  one 
or  two  whom  I  will  take  out  next  fall.  Our  institution  now  numbers 
eighty-nine,  and  every  one  of  that  number  has  had  more  or  less 
teaching  in  articulation,  until,  in  my  own  mind,  I  was  perfectly  sat- 
isfied either  that  that  child  could  not  be  taught  articulation  to  a  prac- 
ticable extent,  or,  that  it  was  worth  while  to  make  the  experiment. 
We  have  now  about  thirty  who  go  to  the  articulation  regularly.  How 
it  could  be  managed  in  a  small  institutionj  without  much  funds,  and 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  171 

where  we  could  not  have  as  many  articulation  teachers  as  we  need,  I 
cannot  say.  And  the  whole  time  that  Professor  Crouter  was  express- 
ing his  views,  that  one  question:  how  did  he  cull  them  out?  was 
running  through  my  mind.  I  cannot  see  how  it  is  done.  I  do  not 
yet  understand  it. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  I  would  like  to  recite  an  incident,  relating  to  one 
of  the  pupils  in  our  school  in  Washington,  which  may  throw  some 
light  upon  the  question  of  how  to  determine  which  pupils  should  be 
taught  to  speak.  I  have  in  mind  a  young  man  who  has  within  a  few 
weeks  passed  an  examination  to  enter  the  college.  He  has  been  a 
pupil  for  a  number  of  years  in  the  Kendall  Green  school.  He  was 
taught  four  or  five  years  in  the  manual  method  before  we  introduced 
the  teaching  in  articulation  some  seven  years  ago.  When  we  began 
teaching  articulation,  he  was  one  of  the  earliest  pupils  taught.  His 
sight  was  defective,  one  eye  being  turned,  and  he  was  not  a  very  vig- 
orous boy  physically.  His  teacher  labored  with  him  for  two  years, 
and  at  the  end  of  two  years  it  seemed  to  me  almost  certain  that  he 
could  never  succeed  in  speech.  But  he  was  an  interesting  boy  in 
many  respects,  and  he  was  intelligent;  and  his  teacher,  who  was  very 
earnest  in  trying  to  succeed  in  every  possible  case,  asked  to  be  allowed 
to  teach  him  still  longer.  He  was  continued  another  year,  and  his 
improvement  the  third  year  was  more  marked.  During  that  year  it 
was  discovered,  much  to  our  surprise,  that  he  had  enough  hearing  to 
be  trained.  And  so  the  oral  method  was  begun  with  this  boy;  and 
the  fourth  year  his  progress  in  speech  and  lip  reading,  with  the  assist- 
ance of  what  hearing  he  had,  was  something  very  remarkable.  And 
to-day  he  is  no  longer  a  deaf-mute.  I  may  say  that  he  is  absolutely 
restored  to  society.  He  uses  the  ear  trumpet  with  as  much  readiness 
as  many  of  the  deaf  gentlemen  here,  and  hears  what  is  said  to  him 
through  the  ear  trumpet,  and  speaks  with  great  precision  and  clear- 
ness, reads  from  the  lips  with  greater  quickness  than  some  pupils  of 
oral  schools,  and  stands  to-day  as  one  of  the  highest  triumphs  of  the 
art.  Yet,  at  the  end  of  two  years  the  scale  barely  turned  in  the  bal- 
ance whether  he  should  not  be  given  up  as  one  with  whom  articula- 
tion and  lip  reading  should  be  tried.  So  I  say  to  all  teachers,  do  not 
be  in  a  hurry  to  give  up  pupils  who  seem  not  to  be  able  to  speak. 

Mr.  Clark,  of  Arkansas:  I  should  like  to  ask  Professor  Gallaudet, 
if  you  had  tested  that  boy  during  the  two  years  aurally,  as  well  as 
orally,  don't  you  think  you  would  have  turned  the  scale  sooner?  We 
did  that,  also,  in  Arkansas. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  Quite  possibly;  but  it  was  not  suspected  that  he 
had  hearing  enough  to  be  of  any  service  to  him.  The  new  light  of 
aural  instruction  had  not  radiated  to  us  from  Omaha.    [Applause.  | 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  In  this  connection.  I  would  like  to  answer  Pro- 
fessor Noyes,  as  an  articulation  teacher,  that  we  take  them  all.  I 
would  like  to  say  to  him,  that  I  consider  it  impossible  to  make  the 
selection  as  he  says.  In  our  school  we  have  nothing  but  the  articu- 
lation or  oral  method;  and  there  are  many  times,  particularly  this 
year,  where  children  have  seemed  to  be  entirely  too  stupid  to  improve 
by  articulation.  After  one  month  or  six  weeks,  or  three  or  four  or 
five  months,  the  most  of  you  would  perhaps  have  given  up.  But  the 
teacher  who  has  charge  of  this  little  class  that  came  to  us  at  the  age 
of  six  or  seven,  and  some  very  much  younger,  has  the  patience  of 
Job,  and  more,  too,  and  never  gives  up.  That  teacher  is  Miss  Moffatt, 
of  our  institution.     She  at  one  time  told  me,  in  conversation:  "I  do 


172  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

believe  that  if  a  few  of  the  sign  teachers  who  think  that  we  use  dis- 
cretion in  choosing  our  pupils  would  come  and  look  at  my  class,  they 
would  be  satisfied  to  the  contrary."  There  are  from  twelve  to  sixteen 
in  her  class,  and  during  the  very  last  month  of  the  school  there  were 
six  who  were  promoted  to  the  next  class  above,  whom  I,  myself,  had 
given  up  as  entirely  hopeless.  And  that  is  the  way  it  is  with  them 
all.  There  is  a  moment  that  comes  when  they  seem  to  wake  up. 
And  no  one  has  the  right  to  take  away  the  chance  of  that  awaken- 
ing. And  to  try  it  for  a  week,  or  six  weeks,  and  then  to  say  they 
cannot  learn  articulation,  is,  I  think,  impossible. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  would  like  to  add  that  my  experience  is  perfectly  in 
accord  with  Professor  Elmendorf  s.  I  recall  to  mind  one  little  boy  from 
whom  during  the  first  year  it  was  almost  impossible  to  get  a  sound 
that  we  could  get  hold  of  as  an  indication  that  he  had  ability  to 
speak,  yet  to-day  he  is  a  fair  articulator.  His  voice  is  weak,  but  his 
intonations  are  clear  and  distinct.  If  we  are  going  to  begin  at  the 
beginning  of  the  first  year,  we  have  got  to  go  over  the  same  ground 
the  second  and  third  year  before  we  can  be  sure  we  have  thoroughly 
sifted  the  matter  and  got  those  who  are  proper  subjects  for  the  oral 
department. 

I  presume  that  almost  all  of  the  teachers  here  have  heard  the  his- 
tory of  Teresa  Dudley,  the  daughter  of  Hon.  Mr.  Dudley.  You  re- 
member that  she  was  taught  two  or  three  years  in  the  American 
Asylum,  at  Hartford,  where  she  acquired  a  very  fair  knowledge  of 
language;  but  that  she  had  not  obtained  a  knowledge  of  oral  speech 
at  that  time.  But  I  firmly  believe  that  the  training  and  cultivation 
of  mind,  the  command  of  language  that  she  had  when  she  left  the 
sign  school,  had  so  awakened  her  that  she  was  just  in  a  condition  to 
take  hold  of  oral  speech  and  make  the  advancement  which  she  did; 
and  that  the  training  which  she  had  previously  had,  fitted  her  for 
the  higher  and  nobler  experiment  of  oral  speech,  and  that  through 
that  and  the  faithful  training  she  had  she  attained  the  degree  of 
articulation  she  now  possesses. 

I  use  this  as  an  argument  to  show  that  we  should  try  not  only  once 
or  twice,  but  again  and  again  to  see  whether  there  is  an  ability  and 
power  to  read  the  lips. 

Mr.  Williams:  It  seems  to  me  that  is  is  impossible  to  determine 
at  once  who  are  and  who  are  not  fit  subjects  for  articulation.  In  our 
schools  we  have  two  skillful  teachers  of  articulation;  and  all  the  new 
pupils  are  put  into  their  hands  and  kept  there  until  we  are  satisfied 
they  will  or  that  they  will  not  succeed,  and  that  it  can  never  be  of  any 
practical  use  to  them. 
.  Our  experience  of  last  year  has  led  me  to  believe  that  we  some- 
times make  a  mistake  even  then.  There  was  a  boy  who  came  to  us 
four  years  ago;  and  he  was,  after  a  test, found  to  be,  as  wTe  thought,  an 
unsuitable  subject  for  articulation.  He  was  rather  a  dull  boy  at  that 
time,  and  there  seemed  very  little  hope  of  any  success  in  that  line. 
He  remained  in  school  a  year  or  two;  was  then  out  for  two  years,  and 
came  back  and  was  in  school  another  year.  At  the  end  of  that  time 
he  began  to  ask  to  be  taught  articulation ;  began  to  try  to  speak  some 
words.  We  then  tried  him  again  and  found  that  his  mind  was  waked 
up  through  the  instruction  that  he  had  received  in  the  sign  language; 
and  that  the  boy  showed  some  aptness  and  some  ability  to  succeed. 
We  took  him  up  and  gave  him  special  instruction,  in  order  not  to 
break  into  the  class  at  that  time;  and  during  this  year  he  has  had 


OK   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  173 

individual  instruction  for  fifteen  minutes  a  day  only,  but  he  has  pro- 
gressed so  rapidly  that  I  think  that  next  year  he  will  be  able  to  go  on 
with  the  rest  of  his  class  who  have  had  articulation  for  three  years. 

We  find  this  difficulty  also;  that  oftentimes  when  pupils  are  first 
taken  up  they  seem  to  show  great  aptness  in  articulation;  will  learn 
the  elements  and  the  symbols  and  combinations,  but  when  you  go  a 
step  further  and  begin  the  more  complicated  combinations;  begin  to 
put  words  into  sentences,  some  of  them  will  fail  utterly,  and  we  can- 
not get  them  out  of  that  condition.  And  so  it  seems  to  me  that  the 
only  way  in  which  we  can  decide  ultimately  who  are  to  succeed  and 
who  not,  is  to  continue  the  experiment  for  some  time,  and  after  an 
interval  to  repeat  the  experiment. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  desire  to  ask  Professor  Elmendorf  whether  in  his 
institution  he  meets  with  any  failures  in  the  teaching  of  articulation? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  During  the  four  years  I  have  been  there  I  have 
had  two  cases  of  failure.  One  of  those  cases  was  frightfully  cross- 
eyed and  near  sighted;  the  other  wras  slightly  idiotic.  The  father  of 
the  one  who  wras  slightly  idiotic  was  one  of  the  Directors  of  the  school, 
and  would  not  have  his  child  taught  privately,  but  insisted  upon  his 
being  in  the  school.  That  boy  came  to  the  school  some  time  before 
I  went  there.  When  he  left  the  school — Mr.  Greenberger,  the  Prin- 
cipal, insisting  upon  it  at  last — he  could  not  talk  or  speak,  except  to 
make  his  own  mother,  and  father,  brother,  and  sister,  and  personal 
friends  understand. 

The  other  boy  had  a  very  fair  education,  and  spoke  very  distinctly, 
but  with  a  powerful  voice.  It  seemed  to  be  impossible  to  make  him 
understand  that  he  was  talking  too  loud.  He  is  understood  very 
well  by  his  own  friends  at  home,  and  is  now  in  business  with  his 
father  and  doing  very  nicely.  I  consider  those  failures.  The  parents 
seem  to  be  satisfied  with  them. 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  the  changes  I  refer  to,  made  from  our  oral  branch 
to  the  main  institution,  the  test  has  been  continued  for  three  or  four 
years.  It  was  not  a  month's  or  six  weeks  test,  but  a  test  for  three  or 
four  years;  after  which  we  thought  we  would  try  the  sign  method. 

In  regard  to  the  difficulties  of  classification  referred  to  by  Mr.  Gil- 
lett;  as  yet  we  have  not  met  them,  and  I  do  not  apprehend  that  we 
shall  meet  them.  I  believe  it  to  be  perfectly  possible  to  carry  on  our 
oral  school  with  an  attendance  of  one  hundred  pupils  or  more,  and 
keep  up  a  perfect  classification  in  both  schools. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Do  you  have  two  divisions  in  the  same  class? 

Mr.  Crouter:  In  the  most  of  our  classes  we  do  not  have. 

Mr.  Ely:  In  the  Maryland  school  we  take  all  the  children  that 
come,  no  matter  what  capacity,  put  them  under  articulation  teachers, 
and  give  them  a  year's  faithful  trial,  and  we  do  not  drop  any  one 
until  the  end  of  that  year.  Then,  of  course,  only  those  that  we  are 
satisfied  from  this  experiment  of  a  year  will  not  profit  by  oral  instruc- 
tion, are  taken  out  of  the  oral  class. 

I  desire,  also,  to  say,  in  reference  to  the  idea  suggested  in  the  paper 
by  Professor  Crouter,  that  the  communications  of  the  pupils  by  signs 
in  the  oral  classes  with  the  other  pupils  on  the  playground  and  out 
of  school,  that  probably  will  not  interfere  with  their  speech,  that  that 
is  in  harmony  with  my  ideas.  In  one  of  my  published  reports,  two 
or  three  years  ago.  I  expressed  the  idea  that  instruction  by  means  of 
signs,  the  manual' alphabet,  and  all  of  the  means  employed  to  reach 
the  minds  of  the  deaf  and  develop  them,  are  of  great  assistance  when 


174  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

we  begin  instruction  in  speech.  Subsequent  experience  has  confirmed 
me  in  that  idea.  I  believe  that  the  first  thing  to  be  done  in  instruc- 
tion in  speech  is  to  reach  the  mind  of  the  child,  and  set  it  to  thinking. 
Having  done  that,  and  having  done  it  effectually,  as  we  do  by  the 
means  which  we  employ  in  the  early  months,  the  first  year  of  teach- 
ing is  the  very  best  preparation  for  commencing  the  instruction  of 
speech.    I  believe  it  is  a  very  important  help. 

Mr.  Knight,  of  Oregon:  I  am  here  simply  as  a  learner — as  the 
Superintendent  of  a  young  and  small  institution— and  I  wish  to  ask 
the  wise  men  of  the  east  a  question.  The  difficulty  with  us,  when 
we  come  to  the  question  of  oral  teaching,  as  we  often  do,  with  the 
small  number  we  have,  how  shall  we  do  it?  My  Trustees  make  the 
objection  that  they  have  not  the  funds  to  employ  a  separate  teacher. 
We  have  heard  a  great  deal  about  combinations,  and  Herbert  Spencer 
says:  "Life  is  a  combination  of  heterogeneous  changes."  And  among 
the  heterogeneous  opinions  of  the  past,  or  through  them,  or  the  influ- 
ence of  them,  we  seem  to  be  coming  to  some  harmony.  Shall  we 
ever  have  a  perfect  combined  system  until  we  have  both  systems 
understood  by  every  teacher?  Would  it  be  best  for  me,  as  a  Superin- 
tendent, to  try  to  employ  a  teacher  who  understands  both  methods? 
and  would  it  be  possible  for  that  teacher  to  meet  the  difficulties  of  the 
case,  teaching  both  classes  of  pupils,  considering  the  fact  that  we  are 
unable  to  introduce  the  oral  method  separately?  Is  there  any  school 
in  the  country  where  such  teachers  are  educated;  or  is  there  any 
tendency  in  this  direction?  If  you  take  the  suggestion  of  Professor 
Gallaudet,  of  Washington,  and  these  oral  teachers  perfect  themselves 
in  the  sign  method,  it  seems  to  me  that  before  long  we  will  have  a 
settlement  of  this  problem.  Would  it  not  be  a  good  policy  to  look  to 
the  idea,  finally,  of  every  teacher  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  understand- 
ing, not  only  the  sign  and  manual  methods,  but  the  oral  method 
also?  In  the  meantime,  my  question  is  this:  What  shall  we  do  in 
small  institutions,  where  we  are  not  able  to  have  the  combined 
method,  for  the  reason  that  we  are  not  able  to  employ  a  sufficient 
number  of  teachers?    How  shall  we  combine  the  methods  in  one? 

The  Chairman:  I  will  call  upon  Dr.  Peet  to  answer  that  question. 

Dr.  Peet:  A  hearing  child  hears  a  great  deal  of  language  before 
he  is  able  to  pronounce  a  single  word.  Speech  is  the  result  of  hear- 
ing. So  I  think  that  successful  articulation  on  the  part  of  a  congeni- 
tal deaf-mute  should  always  be  preceded  by  lip  reading.  I  do  not 
like  the  voice  of  a  great  many  of  the  congenital  deaf.  Many  of  them, 
as  we  have  discovered  in  our  examinations  of  late  years,  can  hear 
sufficiently  to  modulate  their  voices.  Some  of  them  have  spoken 
before  they  became  deaf.  But  you  take  a  totally  congenital  deaf- 
mute  and  his  voice  is  not  agreeable.  It  therefore  seems  to  me  that  it 
is  of  comparative  little  importance  whether  you  succeed  in  such 
cases  in  teaching  them  articulation.  But  I  do  think  that  it  is  of  the 
greatest  importance  that  you  should  teach  them  lip  reading;  then 
every  person  with  whom  they  come  in  contact  can  communicate  with 
them  directly.  They  can  get  the  language  floating  around  in  the 
world.  Then  they  are  given  what  is  almost  equivalent  to  hearing. 
I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  from  my  experience  that  lip  reading 
is  much  more  easily  taught  than  articulation;  that  it  is  more  impor- 
tant; that  it  is  the  foundation  of  articulation,  and  that  if  we  will 
expend  our  strength  in  that  direction  we  shall  accomplish  more  than 
we  have  ever  accomplished  before.     I  think  it  is  a  great  deal  better 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  175 

to  make  our  advances  in  that  direction.  The  moment  a  deaf-mute 
is  able  to  read  the  lips  of  other  persons  he  will  endeavor  to  imitate 
them;  and  he  will  endeavor  to  speak;  will  make  greater  and  greater 
efforts,  which  will  be  crowned  with  greater  success. 

Mr.  Elmendorf,  of  New  York:  I  should  like  to  state  here  that 
that  is  the  articulation  method.  They  must  learn  to  read  lips  before 
they  can  get  speech. 

I  will  state  in  answer  to  Mr.  Crouter's  question  as  to  what  I  mean 
by  failure  or  success  as  follows:  Last  year,  in  the  highest  class  in 
school,  there  were  five  boys,  and  three  of  those  boys  found  positions; 
I  going  with  two  of  them,  the  other  one  went  alone.  He  said  he 
thought  he  could  get  a  position.  I  was  very  much  pleased  and  sur- 
prised to  receive  a  letter  from  Mr.  Anderson,  an  engraver  in  New 
York,  stating  that  he  had  engaged  a  boy  that  was  a  deaf-mute;  and 
that  he  came  from  our  institution,  and  referred  to  me;  that  he  was 
the  first  deaf-mute  that  he  had  ever  spoken  to  without  any  trouble, 
and  that  it  was  the  first  deaf-mute  he  had  ever  heard  speak  intelligi- 
bly. He  had  been  in  our  school  ten  years.  That  is  what  I  call  per- 
fect success. 

Speaking  from  my  own  experience,  about  sixty  per  cent  only  of  the 
pupils  which  I  have  seen  have  done  nearly  as  well  as  that.  There 
are  some  who  cannot  converse  with  strangers,  as  there  are  some  here 
who  cannot  understand  the  signs  of  others,  just  in  the  same  way  as 
I  have  heard  it  stated.  There  is  something  different  in  the  signs 
here  and  there.  There  is  always  something  different  in  the  lips  of 
different  persons.  Some  people  do  not  talk  distinctly.  Some  people 
shut  their  teeth;  others  have  imperfect  mouths.  Some  people  mouth 
too  much  to  deaf  mutes;  a  great  many  teachers  do,  and  that  is  a  great 
hindrance.  But  about  sixty  per  cent  of  all  those  that  T  have  seen  I 
consider  their  training  successful.  There  are  but  few  that,  looking  at 
it  from  my  standpoint,  I  consider  failures.  Will  you  tell  me  any 
normal  hearing  school  in  this  wide  world  that  can  show  any  better 
average  of  success  than  that? 

The  Chairman:  I  now  have  the  honor  of  introducing  to  you  a 
gentleman  from  Sweden,  an  instructor  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  who 
I  think  you  will  be  glad  to  hear  from— Oscar  Krutmeyer. 

Mr.  Oscar  Krutmeyer:  From  the  great  interest  in  the  education 
of  the  deaf  and  dumb  as  well  as  the  blind,  I  am  sure  that  the  dele- 
gates here  now  congregated  will  allow  me  to  describe  the  oldest  and 
largest  institute  in  Scandinavia. 

In  the  year  1809,  Mr.  Pehr  Aron  Borg  commenced,  under  a  great 
many  obstacles  (as  all  deaf-mutes  in  those  days  were  considered  the 
same  as  idiots).  He,  so  far  as  his  private  means  would  allow,  estab- 
lished an  institute  close  to  Stockholm,  Sweden,  which  was  named 
Manilla,  where  he  for  a  number  of  years  gave  instructions  to  the  deaf- 
mutes  by  signs,  and  to  the  blind  by  relief  printing,  adopted  by  him- 
self, which  methods  to  this  day  are  the  same  practiced.  But  it  was 
soon  shown  that  there  were  more  of  these  unfortunates  than  could  be 
accommodated  in  his  school,  and  that  it  had  to  be  enlarged,  when  it 
became  a  State  institute.  Mr.  P.  A.  Borg  was  chosen  to  be  one  of  its 
Directors  and  its  Principal. 

During  the  time  that  the  school  was  Mr.  Borg's  private  concern,  he 
used  for  to  show — contrary  to  the  common  belief  that  these  our  unfor- 
tunate fellow-beings  could  not  be  taught  anything — that  a  Supreme 
Being  had  made  some  remedy  therefor,  to  take  his  pupils  and  travel 


176  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

several  hundred  miles  over  the  country  to  show  what  he  had  accom- 
plished. His  name  spread  with  rapidity  all  over  Europe;  and  he 
had  not  b.een  working  long  in  this  noble  cause  before  he  was  called 
by  the  King  of  Portugal  to  Lisbon,  to  lay  a  foundation  for  an  institute 
there. 

During  the  latter  part  of  his  life  he  was  aided  by  his  son,  Mr. 
Ossian  Edmund  Borg,  who  at  that  time  was  studying  medicine  at  the 
University,  and  who,  after  the  death  of  his  father  (1839),  became 
Principal,  in  which  position  he  continued  to  1874,  when  he  retired. 
During  that  time  he,  on  a  large  scale,  reorganized  that  institution, 
and  was  to  a  great  extent  the  cause  of  establishing  several  of  the  small 
ones  now  in  existence  in  that  country. 

Mr.  O.  E.  Borg,  a  Freemason  of  high  standing,  has  been  decorated 
a  Knight  of  the  Royal  Wasa  Order,  Swedish;  Royal  Danebrogs  Order, 
Danish,  and  Imperial  St.  Anne  Order,  Russian,  besides  being  made 
an  honorary  member  of  the  Deaf  Mutes  Societies  in  Paris,  Berlin, 
Copenhagen,  etc. 

In  memory  of  his  father,  his  countrymen  have,  by  contribution, 
placed  his  bust  (bronze  on  a  granite  pedestal)  in  front  of  the  institute, 
and  have  besides  contributed  a  large  sum  of  money  by  which,  from 
the  interest  thereof,  several  poor  deaf  and  dumb  children  are  kept  at 
that  institute. 

Mr.  O.  E.  Borg  has  a  son  and  a  daughter  employed  as  teachers. 

Manilla  is  also  a  seminary  for  both  sexes.  The  teaching  of  the 
deaf-mutes  is  both  by  sign  and  by  speaking,  and  is  divided  into  three 
classes.  Each  class  has  one  male  and  one  lady  teacher,  and  twenty- 
five  to  thirty  pupils.  Besides  those  three  classes,  there  is  also  one  con- 
firmation or  graduating  class. 

Studies — The  deaf  mutes  of  both  sexes  are  taught  religion,  history, 
geography,  arithmetic,  natural  history,  writing,  drawing,  accounting, 
and  letter  writing. 

Labor — For  the  male  sex:  Tailoring,  shoemaking,  carpentering, 
printing,  bookbinding,  and  blacksmithing. 

For  the  other  sex:  Sewing  (both  by  hand  and  machine),  cooking, 
washing,  and  ironing;  all  deaf-mutes,  besides,  in  gardening. 

For  the  blind — Religion,  history,  geography,  natural  history,  arith- 
metic, astronomy,  mathematics,  writing,  and  music. 

Labor — Basket-making  of  straw  and  rattan,  knitting,  and  crochet. 

The  course  is  from  the  fifteenth  of  August  to  Christmas,  and  from 
January  fifteenth  to  one  of  the  first  days  of  June,  when  there  is  a 
public  examination. 

The  teaching  at  the  school  comprises  thirty  hours  a  week,  and  for 
the  labor  fifteen  or  twenty  hours.  There  are  also  taught  gymnastics 
and  swimming. 

During  the  time  I  was  at  Manilla  (1864  to  1868)  there  were  about 
two  hundred  deaf-mutes  and  eighty  blind  pupils,  but  according  to 
my  latest  information  there  were  last  year  only  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  deaf-mutes  and  fifty-eight  blind,  which  comes  therefrom 
that  they  are  now  divided  on  the  smaller  schools  in  different  parts  of 
the  country,  which  together  contain  about  one  thousand  pupils. 

The  Chairman:  1  had  the  pleasure  of  conversing  with  Rev.  Dr. 
Wines,  of  Illinois,  a  member  of  this  convention,  upon  a  visit  he  made 
to  an  institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  at  Stockholm,  and  he  spoke 
of  it  in  the  highest  terms.  I  think  it  is  a  great  pleasure  to  have  this 
gentleman  with  us.     Dr.  Wines  sent  to  me  for  distribution  here,  spec- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  177 

imen  copies  of  a  paper  which  he  has  just  commenced  to  publish,  enti- 
tled, "  National  Record  of  Corrections  and  Charities."  He  proposes  to 
make  that  paper  of  very  great  value,  and  I  can  heartily  commend  it 
to  all  members  of  the  convention. 

Before  I  left  home,  one  of  the  young  ladies  of  our  school  wanted 
to  know  if  she  might  write  a  letter  to  the  convention.  I  told  her  I 
thought  the  members  would  listen  to  it,  and  if  you  will  kindly  accord 
with  my  quasi  promise,  I  will  ask  the  Secretary  to  read  the  letter  of 
this  young  lady. 

The  Secretary  then  read  the  following  letter,  signed  "Georgia  El- 
liott," which  was  received  with  applause: 

Kind  Superintendents  and  Teachers : 

I  ask  the  dear  privilege  of  calling  your  attention  to  the  young  deaf  and  durnh  ladies, 
who  in  all  these  years  have  seemed  to  be  forgotten,  while  great  attention  is  given  to  the 
higher  education  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  gentlemen.  Look  at  the  excellent  National  Deaf 
Mute  College,  and  its  door  which  is  always  flung  wide  open  to  welcome  the  gentlemen,  but 
not  the  ladies.  I  am  deaf,  but  not  dumb,  and  my  great  desire  is  to  obtain  a  still  higher 
education,  as  many  others  of  the  young  girls  of  the  United  States  do.  I  have  been  attend- 
ing school  regularly  at  the  noble  institution  of  Illinois  for  the  past  few  years,  which  has 
given  me  such  fine  advantages.  From  the  primary  grades  I  have  been  pushing  stead- 
ily forward  until  now,  having  nearly  completed  the  course,  1  am  not  content  with  my 
achievements,  for  1  have  but  tasted  of  the  fount — beyond  lies  the  ocean  of  knowledge.  Girls 
and  boys  are  educated  together  in  all  common  schools,  in  several  colleges,  and  in  all  the 
institutions;  why  should  they  not  be  educated  in  the  national  colleges?  Girls  have  in  all 
schools  as  high  a  rank  as  boys;  indeed,  they  generally  rank  higher  in  their  studies  than 
boys  do.  Thus,  it  is  evident  that  they  would  improve  their  advantages  at  the  college  as 
well  as  the  boys. 

Girls  heed  a  higher  education  as  much  as  boys.  Their  influence  upon  society  as  women, 
as  mothers,  as  sisters,  is  very  great,  and  a  thorough  education  will  better  fit  them  for  all 
their  duties.  They  exert  the  greatest  influence  on  the  active  men  that  do  the  business  of 
the  world,  and  can  use  their  strength  for  good  or  ill,  as  they  like.  As  the  civilization  of 
any  country  advances,  the  scholars  begin  to  inquire  what  the  causes  are  that  make  it 
advance,  and  one  of  the  greatest  helps  to  improvement  of  every  kind,  has  been  learned 
and  good  women.  Thejr  have  the  first  years  of  all  lives  in  their  care,  and  can  mold  and 
direct  them  as  they  will.  Among  hearing  persons,  great  attention  is  given  to  the  higher 
education  of  women.  Look  at  the  many  excellent  academies,  seminaries,  and  colleges: 
Wellesley,  Nassar.  Smith,  Mt.  Holyoke,  and  a  host  of  others.  Look,  too,  at  the  opportu- 
nities given  them  by  Harvard,  Columbia,  Amherst,  Michigan,  and  other  colleges,  for  the 
pursuit  of  advanced  studies.  Is  it  not  a  reproach  to  our  educators  of  the  deaf  and  dumb, 
that  in  all  these  years  they  have  provided  no  college  for  the  deaf  young  women? 

The  majority  of  teachers  in  our  institution  are  women,  many  of  them  deaf  and  dumb. 
How  much  better  fitted  they  would  be  for  such  positions  if  they  could  go  through  a  col- 
legiate course.  The  girls  of  to-day  are  to  be  the  women  of  to-morrow;  and  the  country 
does  well  that  looks  after  the  education  of  its  girls. 

What  would  the  additional  expense  be  to  the  United  States  Government  when  com- 
pared with  the  great  benefits  to  the  pupils  ?  Could  a  few  thousand  dollars  be  spent  to  any 
better  advantage? 

GEORGIA  ELLIOTT. 

The  following  resolution  by  Prof.  A.  E.  Fay  was  adopted  unan- 
imously: 

Resolved,  That  Mr.  Wilkinson  be  requested,  in  behalf  of  the  convention,  to  thank  Pres- 
ident and  Mrs.  Homer  B.  Sprague  for  their  courteous  invitation  to  visit  Mills  Seminary, 
and  to  express  our  regret  that  the  pressure  of  the  business  of  the  convention  will  render 
it  impossible  for  us  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  invitation. 

Professor  Wilkinson  here  proposed  the  names  of  certain  honor- 
ary members. 

Here  the  convention  adjourned  until  two  o'clock  p.  m.  to-morrow. 

12d 


178  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 


NIGHT   SESSION — NORMAL   SECTION. 

The  Chairman:  The  subject  for  discussion  to-night  is  "The  Sign 
Language,"  to  be  led  by  Dr.  I.  L.  Peet. 

Dr.  Peet:  I  regard  this  section  as  perhaps  of  greater  importance 
than  any  other — that  is,  in  regard  to  method  of  teaching.  Every 
person  naturally  selects  the  method  that  seems  to  him  best,  and  it  is 
not  absolutely  essential  that  all  teachers  should  teach  the  same  sub- 
ject in  the  same  way;  but  it  is  very  important  that  when  we  have  a 
language  which  is  to  be  used  by  all  the  deaf  mutes  in  the  country, 
where  they  are  constantly  interchanging  residences,  where  they  are 
meeting  each  other,  where  they  wish  to  communicate  with  each  other 
frequently,  and  when,  as  is  so  often  the  case,  a  teacher  of  deaf  mutes 
visits  other  institutions,  that  they  should  teach  the  same.  It  seems 
to  me  of  very  great  importance  that  this  language  should  not  only  be 
perfected,  but  that  it  should  be  made  uniform.  And  this  seems  to  be 
a  very  favorable  occasion  for  laying  down  some  of  those  principles 
upon  which  we  can  probably  all  agree — to  bring  together  by  way  of 
comparisons  the  signs  for  particular  ideas  and  words  as  used  in  differ- 
ent institutions. 

I  would  say  by  way  of  preface  of  the  few  remarks  that  I  propose  to 
make  upon  the  subject,  that  the  sign  language  as  we  have  it  in  this 
country  was  originally  brought  from  France.  There  is  a  little  French 
letter,  which  is  a  French  word,  which  is  used  in  all  sorts  of  sense  in 
the  French  language,  and  is  also  used  in  all  sorts  of  sense  in  the  sign 
language.  I  allude  to  the  little  word,  and  the  little  letter,  "ily  a" 
We  say  "stay  there"  [showing  by  signs].  It  is  one  of  those  little 
internal  evidences  of  the  origin  of  the  sign  language  as  having  come 
from  France.  A  little  initial  sign  given  a  word  that  is  used  univer- 
sally. This  sign  language  the  early  teachers  learned  from  Mr.  Clerc, 
and  Dr.  Gallaudet  brought  him  over  to  this  country  as  a  living  expo- 
nent of  the  sign  language.  I  remember  Mr.  Clerc  very  well;  a  fine, 
portly  man,  clear  in  his  gesture  and  wonderful  in  his  expression. 
Amd  the  early  teachers  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  all  learned  the  language 
of  signs  in  Hartford  from  Mr.  Clerc,  and  also  from  Dr.  Gallaudet. 
This  language  of  signs  is  perpetual  only  as  it  is  founded  on  correct 
principles.  The  language  of  signs  which  Mr.  Clerc  brought  to  this 
country  was  essentially  a  pictorial  language.  The  deaf  mute  thinks 
in  pictures;  always  has  before  him  the  picture  of  something.  His 
whole  memory  is  a  panorama  which  passes  before  the  vision  of  his 
mind,  and  every  thought  takes  a  pictorial  shape.  Put  two  deaf  mutes 
together  and  in  a  very  short  time  they  are  making  pictures  in  the  air 
to  each  other,  so  as  to  represent  these  pictorial  thoughts.  And  this 
is  the  genius  of  the  sign  language.  We  do  not  begin  at  the  last  of  a 
sentence  and  make  signs  backwards  until  we  get  to  the  beginning. 
We  make  signs  in  precisely  the  same  order  that  the  artist  puts  his 
pencil  upon  paper.  The  line  that  the  artist  draws  first  is  that  first 
drawn  by  the  sign-maker,  and  one  is  just  as  much  an  artist  as  the 
other.  So  if  you  wish  to  ask  what  is  the  natural  order  of  signs,  I 
would  say  it  is  the  order  which  is  necessary  in  order  to  make  a  com- 
plete living  picture. 

In  representing  the  sign  language  a  man  has  to  be,  to  a  certain 
extent,  an  actor.  If  any  person  who  is  not  familiar  with  signs  will 
take  it  as  the  first  rule  that  he  will  ignore  all  fear  of  criticism,  all 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  179 

dread  of  being  laughed  at,  and  at  once  get  at  the  thing  he  wishes  to 
express,  he  will  learn  to  make  signs  very  rapidly  and  very  accurately. 

One  of  the  points  in  the  sign  language  is  location.  As  I  said  before, 
that  is  a  part  of  the  picture.  You  locate  everything  which  you  wish 
to  express  with  its  relations  to  the  other  things,  and  there  you  have  the 
picture.  In  describing  animals  you  represent  their  movements  and 
general  shape.  With  the  elephant  you  represent  the  trunk  and  the 
tusks,  and  the  heavy  solid  movement,  and  the  moving  of  the  trunk. 
With  the  cow  you  represent  the  horns,  the  general  shape,  and  the 
milking  of  the  cow.  With  the  horse  you  represent  his  ears  and  mane, 
and  his  fine  shape,  and  the  straddling  of  the  horse.  That  makes  a 
full  pictorial  sign.  Birds  are  made  in  the  same  way  in  connection 
with  their  method  of  flying.  But  such  full  and  complete  pictorial 
signs  take  up  too  much  time  for  rapid  communication,  and  our  prac- 
tical deaf  mutes  reduce  these  signs  to  the  shortest  space.  Take  the 
ears  of  the  horse  and  ride  him  and  you  have  the  horse.  Take  the 
horns  and  milking,  and  you  have  the  cow.  We  do  not  go  through  all 
of  the  movements  which  are  necessary  to  make  a  complete  picture; 
but  we  make  a  reduced  or  condensed  picture. 

The  next  class  of  signs  to  which  I  will  call  your  attention  are  the 
metaphorical  signs.  If  we  wish  to  make  a  sign  for  obstinate  we  make 
tjtie  ears  of  an  ass  or  mule,  and  the  obstinate  position.  I  remember 
very  well  that  on  one  occasion  Mr.  Gamage,  seated  at  the  teacher's 
table,  said  that  on  one  point  he  was  absolutely  determined;  that  his 
determination  amounted  to  obstinacy.  And  one  of  the  Directors  of 
the  institution,  who  was  visiting  that  day,  asked  the  servant  girl, 
when  passing  behind  him,  what  Mr.  Gamage  was  saying,  and  she 
replied,  "He  said  that  he  was  an  ass."  But  you  are  all  familiar  with 
that  sign.     We  generally  make  it  with  one  hand. 

I  was  once  asked  by  a  lady  why  we  make  the  sign  we  do  for  "late." 
I  said  to  her,  "Can't  you  see  that  it  is  a  little  behind  hand ?"  And 
that  is  precisely  the  same  metaphor  both  in  signs  and  in  words. 

Another  metaphorical  sign  which  is  precisely  the  same  thing  in 
words  and  in  language  is  the  sign  for  "confess." 

There  are  other  signs  that  may  be  called  signs  of  indication.  You 
point  to  your  feet  to  represent  your  feet.  Speaking  of  our  nose  we 
touch  the  nose.  We,  also,  refer  metaphorically  to  signs  of  indication. 
We  teach  and  give  the  sign  for  "red,"  and  we  touch  the  lips;  and  the 
sign  for  "  black  "  we  touch  the  eyebrows. 

I  am  aware  that  I  am  not  addressing  those  who  are  unfamiliar 
with  this  subject.  But  it  seems  to  me  that  it  is  well  for  us  always, 
however  familiar  with  the  subject  we  may  be,  to  consider  the  differ- 
ent classifications  of  the  subject,  to  make  it  easier  for  us  to  explain  to 
others  the  principles  of  a  very  natural  and  very  easily  learned  lan- 
guage, if  people  go  to  work  in  the  right  way. 

The  latest  advances  in  the  sign  language  are  two  points:  First,  in 
the  order  of  signs,  and  second,  in  the  order  of  condensed  signs  for 
special  words.  In  regard  to  the  order  of  signs:  In  ordinary  transla- 
tion between  a  person  speaking  in  the  sign  language  and  the  deaf- 
mutes,  we  adopt  the  general  order  of  the  English  language;  and  there 
is  always  one  center  which  expresses  the  whole  idea  of  the  sentence — 
which  is  the  key  of  it;  and  if  you  represent  the  keynote  in  a  sign 
sentence,  3'ou  give  what  is  almost  an  interpretation  of  the  whole  idea. 
But  persons  translating  in  the  general  order  of  certain  words  have 
made  this  singular  mistake.     They  have  given  a  sign  for  each  single 


180  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

word  in  a  sentence.  A  phrase,  a  clause,  a  metaphor,  or  a  metaphor- 
ical expression,  composed  perhaps  of  several  words,  is  generally  rep- 
resented by  a  very  few  signs,  perhaps  not  more  than  one  or  two.  In 
the  idioms  of  a  language  several  words  are  brought  together  to 
express  a  single  word  or  single  idea,  and  this  single  word  or  single 
idea  is  generally  translated  by  a  single  sign.  When  you  make  a  sign 
for  each  word  in  a  phrase  or  a  clause  or  an  idiom,  you  just  spoil  the 
whole  thing,  and  take  away  all  its  life.  There  is  no  significance  in  it, 
and  you  create  confusion  in  the  mind  of  the  deaf-mute.  But  if  you 
take  the  general  order  of  signs,  the  plain  language,  and  when  you 
come  to  this  idiomatic  expression  or  phrase  or  clause,  give  it  in  a  sin- 
gle sign,  or  the  one  or  two  natural  signs  which  express  it,  and  which 
have  their  equivalent  always  in  single  roots,  in  single  signs,  then  you 
are  giving  the  sign  language  naturally.  And  that,  I  should  say,  is 
the  secret  of  successful  translation  into  signs.  Seize  the  speaker's 
meaning,  and  then  give  it  to  the  deaf-mutes  in  the  way  in  which  they 
would  be  most  likely  to  understand  it;  and  not  attempt  to  follow  out 
each  word,  especially  in  these  metaphoric  phrases  and  clauses.  That, 
as  I  said,  is  one  of  the  general  improvements  that  has  been  made  in 
the  course  of  years.  You  will  notice,  perhaps,  that,  as  we  have  con- 
vention after  convention,  the  sign  language  seems  to  be  more  easily 
adapted  to  translation.  It  is  one  of  the  most  difficult  things  in  the 
world  to  take  the  thoughts  of  one  man  as  he  expresses  them  in  one 
language,  and  translate  it  rapidly  and  clearly  into  another  language. 
There  is  only  one  thing  more  difficult  than  translating  into  signs, 
and  that  is  translating  from  signs  into  words.  [Applause.]  And  the 
difficulty  of  that  is  that  we  are  not  half  so  smart  as  we  think  we  are. 
The  English  language  very  few  people  understand.  We  all  of  us 
believe  we  understand  the  sign  language  better  than  we  do  the  En- 
glish language.  It  is  an  exceedingly  difficult  thing  for  any  man  to 
express  his  own  thoughts  in  words  clearly  and  fully.  When  we 
write  we  have  a  thought  existing  in  our  minds  which  we  wish  to 
bring  out  in  so  clear  a  manner  that  every  one  may  understand  it.  If 
we  extemporize  we  shall  have  an  approximation  to  that  thought.  If 
we  are  writing  and  dash  it  off  we  shall  have  an  approximation  to  our 
thoughts.  We  shall  not  give  it  fully,  clearly,  and  perfectly.  In  order 
for  any  man  to  fully  express  his  own  thoughts  he  has  got  to  make 
about  as  regular  approaches  as  an  army  has  to  take  a  fortification. 
He  gets  nearer  and  nearer  the  idea  by  successive  action,  by  successive 
sentence.  Some  men  write  in  that  way.  They  first  express  a  part  of 
their  idea;  then  repeat  it,  and  say  something  else  and  repeat  it,  and 
say  something  else,  and  get  nearer  and  nearer  their  thought.  That  is 
the  peculiar  style  of  some  writers.  They  cannot  tell  you  the  whole 
thing  first,  but  they  get  nearer  and  nearer  to  it  in  successive  sen- 
tences. But  only  those  writers  who  have  rewritten  the  same  thing 
many  times  and  made  many  corrections  in  their  writings  can  give 
any  thought  fully  and  in  the  exact  words  that  belong  to  it.  This  has 
led  me  to  believe  that  the  phrase,  "  We  think  in  words,"  or  "  We 
think  in  signs,"  is  all  nonsense.  Our  thought  is  entirely  indepen- 
dent of  words,  and  entirely  independent  of  signs.  It  exists  as  a  pict- 
ure in  our  mind,  and  then  we  go  to  work  and  try  to  express  that 
thought  in  words. 

For  that  reason,  I  think  that  the  language  of  signs  has  been  greatly 
abused  in  the  minds  of  those  who  think  that  it  is  an  injury  to  the 
deaf-mute  to  use  signs  instead  of  words.    They  say  they  think  in 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  181 

signs.  They  do  not  think  in  signs.  Sometimes  I  think  that  if  our 
pupils  would  think  at  all,  it  would  be  a  great  improvement.  If  we 
first  have  the  thought,  then  express  it  in  signs,  and  then  express  it  in 
words,  then  we  have  accomplished  a  very  great  victory. 

So,  as  I  have  said,  one  reason  why  it  is  harder  for  a  person  to  trans- 
late from  the  deaf-mute  signs,  however  clearly  they  may  be  related 
to  the  English  language,  than  it  is  to  translate  from  the  English  lan- 
guage into  the  sign  language,  is,  that  we  all  understand  signs  better, 
really,  than  we  do  words.  The  command  of  language  which  will 
enable  a  man  to  take  the  deaf  mute's  clear  thought  and  go  with  him 
from  beginning  to  end,  keeping  pace  with  him  and  giving  the  exact 
idea  clearly  and  fully  in  words,  implies  a  very  remarkable  knowledge 
of  the  English  language;  and  that  is  why  it  is  so  difficult.  It  is  not 
because  we  do  not  understand  the  deaf-mute  signs.  I  can  sit  down 
and  listen  to  a  deaf-mute  sign  maker,  and  follow  him  perfectly.  But 
if  I  am  called  upon  to  put  those  thoughts  into  words,  clear-cut,  terse, 
and  expressive  English,  I  feel  as  if  a  task  were  imposed  upon  me 
which  is  greater  than  I  want  to  perform  at  the  moment. 

The  next  advance,  as  I  understand  it,  in  the  use  of  the  sign  lan- 
guage, is  in  uniting  the  manual  alphabet  with  the  natural  gesture 
which  expresses  the  idea.  If  anywhere  you  make  a  mere  agreement 
upon  a  sign,  and  that  sign  does  not  have  within  it  those  elements 
which  will  make  it  acceptable;  if  it  has  not  as  clear  a  derivation  from 
other  and  accepted  signs  as  English  words  have  from  other  and 
accepted  words,  the  deaf-mutes  will  reject  it.  But  if  there  is  a  clear 
reason  for  it;  if  it  is  directly  in  the  line  of  sign  etymology,  it  will  be 
accepted  and  will  be  used. 

In  rapid  talking  by  signs,  we  cannot  go  through  the  whole  defini- 
tion of  a  word  when  we  give  the  word  itself.  And  so  following  out 
the  analogies,  we  take  certain  rules  of  sign  etymology,  just  as  we  have 
certain  rules  for  the  etymology  of  words,  and  we  get  one  sign  or  an- 
other. 

I  think  one  of  the  most  striking  signs  which  is  founded  upon  the 
manual  alphabet  and  upon  the  idea  which  the  sign  is  to  convey,  and 
also  even  upon  the  Latin  word  from  which  our  English  word  was 
derived,  is  the  sign  for  "religion."  We  take  the  letter  "r,"  which  is 
a  twisted  cord,  or  rope;  we  put  it  upon  the  heart,  and  we  tie  the  heart 
back  to  heaven.  We  take  the  letter  "r,"  and  point  to  heaven,  and 
bring  it  down  to  the  heart.  And  that  is  all  there  is  of  religion.  It  is 
a  short,  easy,  and  expressive  sign. 

The  sign  for  "institution"  has  been  generally  diffused  throughout 
the  various  institutions  for  the  deaf  and  dumb.  We  used  to  speak  of 
institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  as  a  building;  something  that  is 
built  up  with  a  roof  and  with  the  sides  down,  within  which  the  deaf 
and  dumb  go  to  school  and  have  their  hands  feruled.  [Showing.] 
Now  we  make  the  sign  "i"  with  one  hand  which  looks  like  the  spire 
of  an  educational  institution,  and  make  this  sign  for  institution. 
[Showing.]  And  when  we  talk  about  any  kind  of  institution,  politi- 
cal, charitable,  or  social,  we  make  the  same  sign. 

Another  sign  which  is  very  similar,  founded  on  the  natural  sign, 
is  the  sign  for  "instrument."  You  take  the  lever  as  perhaps  the 
fundamental  idea  of  the  word  instrument,  just  as  the  wheels  are  the 
fundamental  idea  of  the  sign  for  "to  go."  You  take  this  letter  "i" 
and  use  it  as  a  lever  and  you  have  got  "instrument;"  and  then  you 
can  talk  of  all  kinds  of  instruments;  a  musical  instrument,  a  legal 


182  PROCEEDINGS    OF   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

instrument,  or  a  surgical  instrument;  anything  which  you  pry  up 
anything  with. 

Then  the  sign  which  I  once  brought  out  in  my  former  lecture,  on 
Initial  Signs — the  sign  for  blessing.  I  have  always  studied  signs  in 
connection  with  my  pupils,  and  not  with  hearing  persons.  I  want  to 
have  a  deaf-mute  teach  me.  I  get  half  my  ideas  from  a  deaf-mute. 
The  deaf-mute  teachers  in  our  institution  meet  at  my  house  every 
Tuesday  evening,  and  we  study  the  sign  language  together.  I  gen- 
erally take  a  passage  of  Scripture  and  read  it,  in  order  that  we  may 
be  better  prepared  for  Sabbath  exercises,  by  signs,  and  they  give  me 
the  sentences,  the  words  corresponding;  they  spell  them  out  as  they 
recognize  them,  and  if  they  cannot  recognize  the  word,  I  say  there 
must  be  something  wrong  in  it,  that  you  do  not  recognize  that  word. 
And  I  try  it  again,  and  get  a  better  sign  if  I  can,  and  keep  on,  until 
finally  we  get  a  sign  that  I  am  sure  they  understand,  and  they  give 
me  a  corresponding  word.  It  often  happens  that  one  of  them  sug- 
gests a  sign  which  is  a  good  deal  better  than  mine,  and  I  accept  it. 

Once  when  I  was  teaching  in  a  high  class  who  were  studying  signs 
together,  I  said  to  them,  "  What  is  the  best  sign  for  philosophy?" 
Every  pupil  in  the  class  tried  to  give  a  very  succinct  sign  for  philos- 
ophy. Finally  one  of  the  girls  took  the  letter  "p,"  made  the  sign  for 
thought,  and  put  it  under  the  other  hand,  and  I  recognized  at  once  as 
thought  plowing  under  the  surface  of  things.  That  is  philosophy. 
So  we  always  speak  of  that  as  philosophy. 

Supposing  we  have  a  sign  for  each  word  in  the  English  language. 
Is  there  any  more  harm  in  using  the  English  language  in  making  a 
sign  for  the  word,  than  in  using  the  English  language  by  writing  it 
or  by  spelling  it?  We  are  not  using  the  sign  language  in  either  case. 
We  are  using  the  English  language  when  we  make  the  signs  in  the 
order  of  the  words,  putting  all  of  the  words  in.  But  there  is  this 
advantage,  that  it  is  shorter,  clearer,»and  more  significant.  The  sen- 
tence, perhaps,  does  not  translate  itself,  but  words  do.  Every  word 
in  the  sentence  is  made  clear  to  the  mind  of  the  deaf-mute,  although 
the  whole  force  of  the  sentence  is  not  made  clear,  and  they  have  to 
work  that  out  for  themselves  and  to  choose  either  spelling  or  writing. 
For  that  reason  it  has  always  seemed  to  me,  that  the  force  of  the 
argument  against  using  signs  in  the  order  of  words,  if  we  wish  to  do 
so  with  intelligent  deaf-mutes,  or  wish  to  converse  with  each  other 
in  the  English  language,  was  very  much  weakened. 

I  am  not  at  all  afraid  of  signs  used  in  the  order  of  words,  although 
I  do  think  that  pictorial  signs,  or  pantomime,  which  is  the  same  thing, 
ought  not  to  be  discarded  in  communicating  with  the  deaf.  The 
great  advantage  of  pictorial  signs  or  pantomime  is  that  you  bring  the 
sign  before  the  minds  of  your  pupil.  You  do  not  give  them  any  hint, 
as  to  the  word  which  they  are  to  use.  You  give  them  a  simple  idea, 
the  same  kind  of  an  idea  you  would  give  them  if  you  showed  them  a 
picture,  and  then  the  deaf-mute  seeing  those  signs,  tries  to  convert 
them  into  language;  in  other  words,  to  express  in  his  own  language 
an  idea  given  to  him,  just  as  he  would  attempt  to  describe  what  he 
had  seen. 

A  fine  picture  upon  the  wall  is  injurious  to  the  deaf-mute,  because 
it  is  not  in  the  English  language.  A  magnificent  scene  that  we  are 
passing  through  is  injurious  to  the  deaf-mute  because  it  is  not  in  the 
English  language.  Scenes  which  are  nothing  but  a  picture  are  inju- 
rious to  the  deaf-mute  because  they  are  not  in  the  English  language. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  183 

This  all  seems  to  me  to  be  perfect  nonsense.  I  accepted  long  ago  the 
opinion  of  the  elder  Gallaudet,  that  the  more  ways  in  which  you  can 
put  language,  the  more  language  in  which  you  can  express  an  idea, 
the  more  ways  in  which  you  get  them  to  think  the  better  you  under- 
stand that  language.     The  mind  is  stronger. 

In  expressing  the  word  "fact,"  something  done,  I  take  the  letter 
4%"  put  it  down  as  accomplished,  and  cut  it  off.  I  make  an  assertion. 
It  is  an  asserted  thing;  and  all  of  these  emphatic  signs  are  alike,  and 
you  can  use  whatever  initial  letter  belongs  to  a  corresponding  word. 

There  is  a  sign  for  "time"  which  we  use  in  New  York,  which  is 
different  from  that  used  in  some  other  institutions.  We  take  the 
letter  "t,"and  make  a  single  circle  with  it,  to  represent  the  word 
"time." 

The  other  day  it  struck  me  that  our  sign  for  "travel "  or  "journey" 
was  rather  difficult,  so  I  consulted  with  some  of  my  deaf-mute  assist- 
ants, and  they  concluded  that  the  new  sign  which  I  suggested  was 
better  than  the  old  one.  You  know  we  take  the  revolution  of  the 
earth,  and  a  journey  is  a  day's  movement.  "  So  we  not  only  make  this 
general  movement,  but  we  give  the  idea  of  the  revolution  of  the  earth, 
which  is  the  journey.  Instead  of  that  we  travel  now  in  an  altogether 
different  way  from  what  we  did.  So  I  take  the  letter  "t"  for  the  initial 
of  "travel,"  and  also  make  the  smoke-pipe  of  a  locomotive  or  steamer, 
and  we  travel  in  that  w&y  now.    [Showing.]    That  ii  a  very  short  sign. 

You  all  know  our  general  sign  for  "nations."  Dr.  Gallaudet  and 
some  others  take  the  letter  "n"  and  indicate  a  little  place  upon  the 
globe  for  the  nation.    Take  the  letter  "g"  and  we  get  " Gentiles." 

A  great  many  of  these  signs  are  exceedingly  natural.  If  you  wish 
to  discover  anything  you  take  the  cover  off  of  it.  So  our  sign  for 
"discover"  is  to  make  the  sign  for  the  letter  "  d"  and  point  down. 

Has  it  ever  struck  you  why  we  always  make  the  sign  we  do  for 
"from?"  You  notice  that  it  is  the  same  thing  that  is  for  the  letter 
"x;"  the  Latin  word  for  "from"  is  "ex."  The  word  "experience" 
means  that  we  fish  a  thing  out.  The  other  day  I  had  the  word  "  exor- 
cise," and  I  did  not  know  how  I  could  make  my  deaf-mute  audience 
spell  the  word  "exorcise,"  in  my  reading  of  the  Scripture.  The 
magician  who  was  going  to  exorcise  the  evil  spirit  put  up  his  hand 
and  moved  it  in  this  way.    [Showing.] 

With  these  few  words,  and  willing  to  answer  any  questions  that 
may  be  put  to  me,  I  will  refrain  from  trespassing  upon  your  patience 
longer. 

Mr.  Noyes:  It  has  always  seemed  to  me  that  one  of  the  great  points 
in  the  sign  language  is  that  it  is  natural,  and  so  emphatically  so  that 
pupils  in  all  of  our  different  institutions  can  understand  the  signs 
made,  and  that  even  foreigners  who  have  been  taught  in  sign  schools, 
or  in  schools  for  the  deaf,  when  they  come  here  very  readily  under- 
stand religious  services,  when  they  are  conducted  in  the  natural 
signs.  It  seems  to  me  that  if  we  are  going  to  have  in  the  New  York 
and  Philadelphia  institutions  some  initial  letter,  or  some  little  motion 
of  the  finger  which  may  be  akin  to  the  letter,  where  will  our  natural 
sign  language  be? 

Dr.  Peet:  I  will  answer  your  question  by  asking  another:  Suppose 
there  is  some  word  you  cannot  express  by  natural  signs? 

Mr.  Noyes:  If  I  mistake  not,  in  my  early  days  your  honored 
father  stated  in  public  that  there  was  no  clear,  definite,  and  distinct 


184  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

idea  but  what  could  be  conveyed  through  the  medium  of  the  sign 
language. 

Dr.  Pep:t  :  Yes,  sir.  But  if  you  get  a  sign  which  is  perfect  in  every 
relation  that  it  can  hold  to  a  word,  and  has  in  itself  a  significance, 
and  is  very  much  clearer  than  any  other  sign,  why  should  you  reject 
it  simply  because  it  is  new? 

Mr.  Noyes  :  My  idea  would  be  to  hold  on  to  it  if  it  is  natural.  In 
Minnesota,  when  I  first  went  there,  I  had  a  school-room  which  fronted 
on  the  street,  and  sometimes  when  I  was  busy  with  my  classes  I  would 
see  their  eyes  going  towards  the  window;  and  looking  in  that  direc- 
tion I  would  see,  perhaps,  half  a  dozen  Indians,  their  eyes  just  over 
the  closed  blind,  looking  in.  I  called  them  in  sometimes;  gave  them 
a  seat  to  let  them  see  our  natural  signs.  They  understood  them 
readily.  But  if  I  undertook  to  use  some  of  these  initial  signs,  or 
these  arbitrary  signs,  they  would  be  all  confused.  They  understood 
the  natural  signs,  and  took  in  the  thought  readily.  And  if  we  con- 
vey our  ideas  clearly  in  the  natural  signs,  why  not  hold  on  to  them  ? 
If  this  natural  sign  language  is  competent  to  convey  to  the  mind  of 
deaf  children  these  ideas  clearly,  it  seems  to  me  that  it  is  important 
to  hold  on  to  this  general  language  of  signs,  so  that  we  may  be  readily 
understood;  and  so  that  if  a  teacher  passes  from  the  New  York  insti- 
tution to  the  Minnesota  we  shall  not  be  all  in  confusion.  If  there  is 
a  general  natural  language  of  signs  let  us  have  it  and  hold  on  to  it. 
For  school-room  purposes  I  admit  that  initial  signs  are  very  excellent, 
and  very  desirable;  but  I  refer  now  to  general  discourse  in  the  sign 
language.  The  object  of  sign  language  is  to  enable  us  to  reach  the 
minds  of  children,  and  convey  to  them  ideas  which  they  cannot 
understand  in  the  English  language. 

To  give  an  instance  of  the  power  of  the  sign  language  which  I 
shall  never  forget:  About  three  years  ago  a  girl  thirteen  years  old 
was  being  sent  to  me,  and  on  her  wTay  to  school  for  the  first  time  she 
ran  away  from  her  father  at  the  depot  and  started  for  home.  Her 
father  advertised  for  her,  and  in  a  few  hours  she  was  taken  up  on  the 
railway  track  on  her  way  home,  with  her  shoes  in  her  hand,  where  she 
had  defied  the  railroad  train  and  stopped  the  passengers  by  remaining 
upon  the  track.  It  took  five  men  to  put  her  into  a  buggy  and  shut 
her  up  in  jail.  They  telegraphed  to  me  asking  if  I  had  lost  a  crazy 
mute.  I  had  never  seen  her.  She  was  brought  to  me;  and  every 
man,  and  every  human  being,  she  seemed  to  think  was  against  her,  and 
she  was  terribly  against  them.  The  first  time  I  went  into  the  house 
to  meet  her  I  found  her  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  looking  like  a 
demon,  if  I  ever  saw  one.  The  only  articles  in  the  room  were  an  iron 
bedstead  with  woven  wire  mattress,  and  a  trunk.  She  put  her  foot 
through  her  trunk  as  quick  as  I  could  put  it  through  a  straw  hat. 
In  a  little  while,  by  the  use  of  the  sign  language,  as  she  could  not 
understand  a  single  word  or  letter,  I  got  hold  of  the  girl  and  quieted 
her  down,  and  she  is  to-day  an  interesting,  a  happy,  and  intelligent 
girl.  In  less  than  three  days'  time  I  had  her  quiet,  and  she  under- 
stood me  to  a  considerable  extent,  and  I  understood  her,  and  there 
was  established  quite  a  friendly  relation  right  away.  And  this  was 
all  through  the  medium  of  natural  signs. 

It  seems  to  me  that  there  is  something  in  natural  signs  that  we 
want  to  hold  on  to  and  keep  until  we  can  get  these  children  lifted  up 
into  the  English  language,  and  then  we  do  not  care  anything  about 
it.    If  there  is  a  genuine  sign  language  that  the  Indian  and  the  uned- 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  185 

ucated  deaf  can  understand  let  us  hold  on  to  it.  If  we  can  improve 
on  it,  very  well.  But  it  seems  to  me  we  should  seek  for  that  which  is 
natural  and  easy;  which  will  convey  easily  to  uncultivated  minds  the 
ideas  we  have  in  view. 

Mr.  Weston  Jenkins:  I  rather  deprecate  this  discussion  of  the 
uses  and  advantages  of  the  sign  language.  There  are  many  different 
views  to  be  presented  here,  and  a  good  many  teachers  who  are  here 
very  probably  think  that  the  sign  language  is  of  no  use  in  the  school- 
room; that  it  is  an  incumbrance  rather  than  a  help.  But  if  all  the 
views  and  different  opinions  are  brought  out  in  a  controversial  way 
and  taken  down  in  the  records  of  the  proceedings,  I  fear,  with  the 
Apostle,  that  the  world  itself  will  not  contain  the  books  which  shall 
be  written. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  cannot  agree  with  the  last  speaker.  I  think  there 
is  a  great  deal  to  be  learned  by  discussing  this  language  of  signs.  I 
am  a  young  teacher  myself,  and  while  I  agree  with  all  who  have 
spoken  in  favor  of  natural  signs,  I  think  there  is  a  great  deal  due  to 
the  originator  of  these  initial  signs.  They  have  been  a  great  benefit 
to  me  and  to  all  of  us.  We  have  unconsciously  got  into  the  use  of 
them;  and  they  shorten  interpretations  very  often.  They  are  often 
very  handy ;  and  I  use  them ;  and  I  do  not  believe  it  hurts  anybody  to 
use  them  ordinarily.  I  believe  the  use  of  natural  signs  and  of  panto- 
mime where  necessary  has  a  beneficial  effect. 

As  an  illustration  of  pantomime  Dr.  Peet  read  "The  seven  ages  of 
man,"  which  was  interpreted  by  Mr.  C.  W.  Gamage  with  great  ap- 
plause. 

The  Chairman:  I  think  the  audience  would  like  to  hear  from  Dr. 
Gallaudet,  of  Washington. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  I  have  listened  with  great  interest  to  the  remarks 
made  in  the  early  part  of  the  evening;  one  in  particular  to  which  I 
will  refer  briefly  which  seems  to  me  of  very  considerable  importance 
to  those  who  will  be  sign  makers,  especially  to  those  who  will  under- 
take to  lecture  in  signs;  to  speak  to  a  body  of  deaf-mutes,  children  or 
adults,  or  one  who  will  attempt  to  translate  from  speech  into  the  lan- 
guage of  signs.  A  little  later  on  I  shall  have  a  remark  to  make  with 
reference  to  translating  from  signs  into  speech,  about  which  some- 
thing was  said  a  little  while  ago,  and  I  will  then  give  my  reasons  for 
so  doing. 

First  of  all,  in  the  expression  of  one's  ideas  by  signs,  to  speak  from 
my  own  experience  I  would  say  that,  dating  away  back  to  the  time 
when  I  first  attempted  to  lecture  in  Hartford  many  years  ago,  having 
prepared  the  notes  of  a  lecture  of  an  historical  character,  I  went  to  my 
room  and  before  a  mirror  delivered  the  lecture.  I  studied  carefully 
all  the  signs  and  what  series  of  signs  would  convey  the  ideas  that  I 
wished  to  convey  clearly  and  distinctly  without  repetition.  I  do  not 
say  that  I  study  my  signs  before  the  mirror  now.  Perhaps  I  have 
gotten  by  that.  But  I  will  say  that  it  is  my  practice  when  I  am  about 
to  go  to  a  Sabbath  school  to  open  its  exercises,  and  to  read  a  passage 
of  Scripture,  it  is  my  practice  up  to  this  present  time  to  have  the  pas- 
sage of  Scripture  before  going  to  the  chapel,  to  read  it  over  carefully, 
and  to  determine  in  my  mind  how  I  will  present  this  or  that  passage 
in  signs.  I  do  not  give  the  actual  words.  Take  for  instance  the  ex- 
pression: "Though  he  slay  me  I  will  yet  trust  him."  I  read  that  over 
and  see  in  what  signs,  in  what  form  of  expression  in  signs,  the  ideas 
conveyed  by  those  words  can  be  conveyed  most  clearly  and  certainly 


186         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

to  the  minds  of  those  who  may  be  spectators.  And  I  think  it  is  of 
great  importance,  when  one  is  to  speak  in  signs,  to  be  sure  beforehand 
what  series  of  signs  will  best  convey  the  idea  of  the  speaker;  and  then 
to  give  those  signs. 

This  may  possibly  be  at  variance  with  the  custom  of  some  who 
claim,  perhaps,  that  they  speak  as  naturally  in  signs,  and  as  freely,  as 
in  speech.  That  may  be  true.  But  I  still  think  that  to  speak  clearly 
in  the  sign  language  requires  some  forethought,  some  reflection,  and 
some  arrangement.  And  the  suggestion  comes  to  me,  whether  it 
should  be  in  accordance  with  the  English  order  or  not.  I  will  say 
for  myself  that,  without  attempting  to  follow  the  English  order  closely, 
I  do  like  to  present  my  ideas  in  signs  in  an  order  which  is  not  dis- 
torted and  twisted  from  the  English  order;  I  like  to  follow  it  as  nearly 
as  I  can  without  sacrificing  grace  and  ease  in  the  sign  expression. 

In  reference  to  translating  from  speech  into  signs,  in  my  own  prac- 
tice I  have  followed  the  rule  of  endeavoring  there  as  in  the  other  case 
to  use  those  signs  which  will  most  clearly  express  the  ideas  which  I 
wish  to  convey,  without  attempting  to  follow  very  closely  either  the 
order  of  words  or  even  the  order  of  sentences  of  the  speaker. 

During  the  past  year  I  have  been  one  Sunday  in  every  month  inter- 
preting services  in  Washington  City,  in  a  church  there,  for  a  company 
of  deaf-mutes  that  have  been  in  the  habit  of  attending.  And  I  found 
at  once  when  I  began  to  perform  that  service  that  to  give  the  inter- 
pretation clearly  and  well  I  should  follow  the  speaker  by  an  appre- 
ciable time;  that  is,  that  I  should  hear  what  he  had  to  say,  and  should 
keep  up  my  line  of  thoughts,  expressed  in  signs  at  an  appreciable  dis- 
tance behind  him  in  point  of  time,  that  I  might  have  an  opportunity 
of  carrying  on  a  mental  process  sufficient  to  convert  his  ideas  clearly 
into  signs,  without  attempting  to  follow  closely  the  order  of  his  ex- 
pression. 

With  reference  to  the  translation  of  the  sign  language  into  speech, 
my  experience  has  been  that  the  difficulty  which  is  encountered  there 
depends  very  much  on  the  way  in  which  the  sign  speaker  uses  the 
sign  language.  It  has  been  my  experience  that  if  the  sign  speaker 
has  been  clear  in  his  utterances  that  it  is  not  a  matter  of  the  greatest 
difficulty  to  translate  those  utterances  into  speech.  My  general  expe- 
rience is  that  it  is  a  very  difficult  matter  to  translate  the  ideas  of  one 
who  is  speaking  by  signs  into  speech.  But  I  think  this  arises  in  a 
very  great  degree  from  carelessness;  sometimes  from  a  lack  of  precis- 
ion and  absolute  clearness  in  the  signs  of  the  speech  itself.  And  I 
think  that  if  those  qualities  were  cultivated  that  the  translation  from 
sign  speech  into  oral  speech  would  be  less  difficult  than  we  often  find 
it  to  be. 

I  would  like  to  say  just  a  single  word  to  the  teachers  of  the  deaf 
here,  simply  in  reference  to  the  efforts  which  ought  to  be  made  to 
maintain  and  to  hold  the  sign  language  in  what  we  may  call  a  pure 
state.  I  mean  by  that  to  make  earnest  effort  to  have  a  thorough  and 
full  command  of  what  may  be  termed  the  sign  language.  That,  I 
admit,  is  a  somewhat  indefinite  expression.  I  cannot  say  definitely 
what  the  sign  language  includes.  It  may  include  more  or  it  may 
include  less;  but  my  own  idea  of  the  language  of  signs  is,  that  it  ena- 
bles us  as  speakers  to  the  deaf  to  convey  our  ideas  clearly  and  satis- 
factorily, and  in  a  manner  which  shall  be  interesting  to  the  minds  of 
deaf  persons. 

To  preserve  the  sign  language  in  its  purity,  we  must  depend  upon 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  187 

those  whom  we  have  reason  to  believe  know  it  in  its  purity;  and  we 
must  imitate  them.  If  there  is  in  an  institution  one  teacher  who  is 
known  to  be  a  clear  sign  maker,  he  must  be  studied  and  deferred  to 
by  the  others.  The  sign  language  can  be  kept  in  its  purity  only  by  a 
decided  effort  to  use  it  clearly  and  to  use  it  fluently.  I  have  seen 
sign  makers  who,  it  seemed  to  me,  were  very  careless  in  their  signs. 
I  have  not  seen  any  here  in  California  since  I  have  been  here,  of 
course,  as  our  interpreters  have  all  been  graceful  and  clear  in  their 
sign  making.  But  I  have  seen  sign  makers  who  seemed  to  be  care- 
less, and  who  might  improve.  It  is  a  matter  almost  like  letter  writ- 
ing. A  sign  maker  can  be  very  indistinct  and  imperfect;  or,  on  the 
other  hand,  if  he  gives  thought  to  what  he  is  doing,  he  may  express 
himself  in  signs  with  clearness,  without  repetition,  and  in  a  manner 
interesting  and  entertaining  to  those  who  see  him  speak. 

I  have  in  my  mind  now  some  of  the  masters  of  the  sign  language, 
as  I  recollect  them;  some  of  the  men  who  are  passing  off  the  sphere 
of  action.  I  remember  the  Rev.  Mr.  Turner,  formerly  Principal  at 
Hartford.  He  used  to  come,  in  our  early  years,  to  Washington,  and 
lecture  to  our  students  there.  I  remember  one  lecture  given  by  him, 
especially — the  most  entertaining  one  at  which  I  was  ever  present. 
He  was  clear,  distinct,  and  full  in  all  that  he  undertook  to  say.  And 
from  that  time  to  this  I  have  felt  this  power  worthy  of  serious  and 
earnest  cultivation. 

I  was  asked  a  little  while  ago  by  a  deaf  teacher,  if  a  dictionary  of 
signs  could  be  written.  I  doubt  it.  Dictionaries  of  signs  have  been 
written;  but  as  to  the  question,  could  one  be  written  which  would  be 
very  useful  in  translating  the  sign  language,  I  shall  have  to  answer,  I 
doubt  it.  I  think  the  language  must  be  preserved  by  its  being  taught 
by  one  who  uses  it  well  to  others  who  desire  to  use  it  well. 

Mr.  Henry  White,  of  Utah:  Personally,  I  am  as  much  opposed 
to  the  use  of  signs  as  any  one;  I  am  a  pure  oralist.  Signs  do  not 
have  any  influence  upon  the  mistakes  of  deaf-mutes.  Signs  some- 
times help  and  sometimes  do  not  help  deaf-mutes.  If  a  class  could 
get  along  without  signs,  I  would  be  glad  not  to  use  them.  But  that 
cannot  be  done.  When  I  lost  my  hearing,  before  I  went  to  the  insti- 
tution, I  had  made  signs,  but  without  any  definite  system  at  all. 
When  I  came  to  the  institution,  I  could  not  have  gotten  ideas  if  the 
teachers  had  only  spelled  or  written,  but  I  had  to  get  ideas  through 
the  signs.  Signs  are  necessary  to  the  conveying  of  ideas,  and  if  you 
try  to  get  along  without  them,  you  lose  a  great  deal  of  time. 

I  have  been  to  two  schools;  one  where  signs  were  made,  and  one 
where  they  were  not— to  the  Hartford  institution,  and  Horace  Mann 
school  in  Boston.  It  is  more  natural  for  the  deaf  child  to  think  in 
signs.  Out  of  school  they  will  make  natural  signs.  They  will  use  signs 
describing  things  that  they  have  seen.  Under  the  influence  of  teach- 
ers, who  use  signs,  they  learn  to  make  much  better  and  correct  signs. 
W^e  have  had  an  illustration  this  evening,  by  Dr.  Peet,  of  why  he 
makes  the  sign  he  does  for  "cow;"  and  why  he  makes  the  motion  of 
the  horse,  and  the  riding  of  the  horse.  I  think  that  is  very  impor- 
tant. 

I  never  shall  forget  with  how  much  interest  I  received  the  first 
lesson  that  I  ever  had.  I  do  not  believe  I  ever  had  lessons  in  Yale 
College  in  the  English  language,  or  Greek,  Latin,  or  German,  that 
interested  me  more  than  the  little  short  lessons  of  half  an  hour,  that 


188         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

I  received  the  first  year  I  was  initiated  into  the  use  of  the  sign  lan- 
guage. 

I  think  the  Superintendents,  or  whoever  have  the  charge  of  initi- 
ating a  new  teacher,  that  knows  nothing  about  the  language  of  signs, 
should  have  them  taught  clearly,  distinctly,  and  definitely  in  regard 
to  these  fundamental  signs,  and  then  the  combination  and  use  of 
them  in  the  school-room  can  be  made  from  time  to  time,  and  can  be 
made  clear,  interesting,  and  profitable.  This  is  also  profitable  as  a 
study  of  language. 

It  has  been  my  experience  and  observation  that  those  teachers  who 
have  a  clear  and  distinct  understanding  of  the  use  of  the  sign  lan- 
guage, and  can  use  it  clearly  in  the  school  or  lecture-room,  are  the 
most  successful  teachers 

There  are  some  gentlemen  here,  perhaps,  connected  with  the  Penn- 
sylvania institution  who  remember  Dr.  Hutton,  the  honored  Princi- 
pal of  that  institution,  and  with  how  much  care  he  initiated  his  new 
teachers.  And  I  want  to  say  in  this  connection  that  I  never  in  my 
life  realized  the  power  and  force  of  the  language  of  Scripture  in  the 
parable  of  the  sower,  until  I  saw  Dr.  Foster  one  Sabbath  morning 
use  that  and  put  it  in  the  form  of  signs.  I  forgot  that  I  was  in  the 
chapel,  and  I  seemed  to  see  the  sower  and  see  how  he  scattered  the 
seed;  and  how  the  seed  fell  by  the  wayside  and  upon  the  stony  places. 
And  I  have  seen  pupils  that  would  watch  a  speaker  or  signer  with 
tears  in  their  eyes,  following  him  as  he  presented  these  thoughts  one 
after  another.  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  there  is  a  power 
in  the  sign  language  in  its  presentation  of  vivid  thought,  if  it  is  rightly 
used,  that  this  English  language  does  not  possess.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Ely:  I  want  to  emphasize  the  point  made  by  Dr.  Gallaudet  in 
his  remarks,  and  also  touched  upon  by  Mr.  Noyes.  I  agree  with  Mr. 
Noyes^that  the  sign  language  is  a  language  of  remarkable  power;  and 
that  in  the  presentation  of  religious  truth  it  certainly  is  not  second  to 
the  English  language.  We  can  reach  the  hearts  of  our  listeners 
through  the  medium  of  the  sign  language  oftentimes  more  surely, 
more  effectively,  and  with  greater  power  than  we  can  by  the  use  of 
spoken  language.  But  the  point  that  I  was  going  to  insist  upon  was 
this,  in  regard  to  the  purity  of  the  sign  language:  I  have  sometimes 
thought  that  this  language  was  deteriorating.  There  is  great  danger 
that,  if  we  are  not  on  our  guard,  it  will  be  corrupted ;  will  not  be  kept 
in  the  purity  in  which  it  has  been  used  in  the  past.  There  is  a  ten- 
dency I  think  among  those  of  us  who  are  using  it  to  adopt  and  absorb 
into  the  language  what  may  be  called  slang  signs.  There  is  slang  in 
use  among  those  who  use  the  sign  language  as  truly  as  among  those 
who  use  spoken  language.  And  many  of  those  signs,  because  they 
express  some  thought,  some  idea,  or  some  folly  of  the  time  in  an 
amusing  way,  are  gradually  becoming  incorporated  into  the  sign  lan- 
guage. And  I  think  it  is  in  the  power  of  the  teachers  of  an  institution 
to  do  much  to  keep  the  language  pure,  as  it  should  be.  Pupils  will 
of  course  invent  new  signs,  and  sometimes  they  invent  very  express- 
ive and  good  ones;  signs  that  are  worthy  of  being  incorporated  into 
the  language.  But  oftentimes  signs  come  into  daily  use  that  ought 
to  be  ruJed  out.  I  think  that  if  teachers  will  pull  together  it  will  do 
much  to  keep  the  language  as  it  should  be. 

Mr.  Frank:  I  think  that  the  use  of  signs  helps  a  great  deal  in  the 
higher  classes;  that  it  saves  time.  Pupils  may  begin  with  natural 
signs,  but  when  they  have  been  in  school  longer  they  will  use  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  189 

initial  signs.  I  have  lately  caught  several  of  these  slang  signs  to 
which  Professor  Ely  has  just  referred.  I  agree  with  Dr.  Gallaudet  that 
the  signs  should  be  arranged  and  kept  systematically.  I  think  that 
we  should  adhere  to  some  particular  signs,  and  that  the  teacher 
should  criticise  the  pupils  for  their  use  of  any  other  signs.  A  variety 
of  signs  confuses  the  deaf-mute. 

Here  the  section  adjourned  until  to-morrow,  at  nine  o'clock  a.m. 


TUESDAY,  JULY  20,  1886. 

MORNING   SESSION — NORMAL   SECTION. 

Mr.  Ely  in  the  chair  calls  the  meeting  to  order. 

Prayer  was  then  offered  by  Rev.  Dr.  Gallaudet. 

The  Chairman:  The  subject  of  this  morning's  session  is  "Instruc- 
tion in  Art."  This  section  will  be  led  by  Mrs.  A.  J.  Griffith,  of 
Illinois. 

Mrs.  Griffith:  We  who  are  engaged  in  the  work  of  this  depart- 
ment congratulate  ourselves  and  the  class  for  which  we  labor  that 
the  time  has  come  when  art  is  considered  so  important  a  factor  in 
the  instruction  of  deaf-mutes  as  to  be  allowed  a  portion  of  the  valu- 
able time  of  this  convention.  Our  object  is  to  consider  the  best 
methods  of  imparting  this  knowledge  to  make  it  of  greatest  practical 
value.  The  question  for  the  hour  is,  "What  to  do  and  how  to  do  it." 
Our  worthy  Chairman  suggested  "experience  as  of  more  value  than 
theory."  My  twelve  years  of  teaching  have  been  so  many  years  of 
experiments,  having  no  preconceived  theories  to  maintain.  We  fol- 
low no  rigid  rules  of  instruction;  as  tastes  and  talents  differ  the 
method  differs.  We  give  elementary  instruction  in  the  different 
school-rooms  to  those  pupils  who  have  been  in  schools  over  three 
years,  a  fifteen-minute  lesson  once  a  week,  consisting  of  lines,  straight 
and  curved,  angles,  squares,  and  a  few  geometric  forms — teaching 
them  the  names  of  lines  and  angles— the  first  original  design,  as  they 
advance.  In  this  way  the  whole  school  gets  the  instruction  in  draw- 
ing, and  it  also  affords  an  opportunity  to  find  those  who  have  a 
special  talent  for  this  work,  who  are  then  placed  in  classes  occupying 
from  one  to  two  hours  a  day,  so  arranged  as  to  least  interfere  with 
their  school  work.  They  study  model  and  cast  drawing  in  charcoal 
and  crayon,  rapid  sketching  from  life  and  nature,  application  of 
design  in  clay  modeling  and  wood  carving,  crayon  portrait  work,  and 
oil  and  water  color. 

Mrs.  Griffith  (after  the  reading  of  paper) :  Miss  Eleanor  Patten, 
one  of  our  pupils,  will  give  an  illustration  of  her  mode  of  teaching. 

Miss  Patten  (a  deaf-mute  speaking  through  an  interpreter):  The 
first  step  is  a  straight  vertical  line.  I  ask  the  pupils  the  name  of 
that  line,  and  teach  it  to  them.  Then  I  cause  them  to  commit  it  to 
memory;  have  them  all  stand  up  around  the  large  slates  and  draw 
vertical  lines  as  nearly  as  possible  with  a  ruler.  At  first  they  get  it 
crooked,  but  after  practice  they  get  a  neat  straight  line. 

The  second  step  is  to  make  the  same  thing  without  a  ruler.  I  have 
them  make  a  great  many  of  them  for  practice.     I  give  the  direction 


190  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

to  draw  a  vertical  line,  or  so  many  vertical  lines,  without  the  ruler. 
I  show  them  their  mistakes  and  correct  them. 

The  third  step  is  to  make  a  horizontal  line,  with  a  ruler  first,  and 
then  without  a  ruler,  following  the  same  plan  as  was  used  with  the 
vertical  line  instruction. 

The  next  step  is  to  teach  the  child  how  to  measure  by  inches — one,, 
two,  three,  and  so  forth — with  the  ruler.  After  this  is  learned  I  give 
them  directions  to  draw  a  vertical  line  so  many  inches  long,  first 
with  a  ruler  and  then  without  it.  After  repeated  corrections,  they 
learn  to  draw  very  well  without  the  ruler,  according  to  the  directions. 

The  next  step  is  to  draw  a  square  with  the  ruler  several  times,  until 
they  can  get  it  square  with  a  ruler;  and  then  to  draw  them  without 
the  aid  of  a  ruler.  Then  they  make  the  diameters  of  the  square,  and 
then  the  diagonals  of  the  square,  and  so  on.  That  includes  the  first 
year. 

Mrs.  Griffith:  These  exercises  come  once  a  week.  We  have  a 
writing  teacher  who  gives  instructions  in  writing  fifteen  minutes 
every  day  in  the  different  school-rooms,  excepting  Wednesday,  and 
this  work  comes  on  Wednesday. 

Dr.  Peet:  Does  all  of  this  drawing  exercise  come  upon  one  day  in 
the  week? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  Yes,  sir;  Wednesday  for  the  whole  school.  This 
elementary  work,  but  fifteen  minutes  at  a  time. 

Miss  Patten:   The  second  year  they  begin  figures  similar  to  this: 


They  make  lines  across  the  center  of  the  diameter  or  square  first,  and 
then  make  the  other  lines  within  the  square.  Then  I  divide  that  up 
into  smaller  squares,  putting  figures  into  it,  forming  designs  in  the 
square.  Finally  they  draw  quite  complicated  designs  the  second  year. 
I  often  draw  in  one  of  these  small  squares  a  pattern  myself,  and 
require  the  filling  in  of  the  other  squares  without  my  aid;  and  by 
and  by  they  become  so  proficient  that  they  can  make  these  patterns 
themselves  without  a  teacher. 

The  third  year  I  begin  curved  lines;  first  a  circle,  and  the  diameter 
of  the  arc  of  a  circle,  and  so  on.  And  I  also  use  curved  lines  in  the 
square  in  the  manner  that  I  have  already  indicated.  I  require  them 
to  draw  many  patterns  of  that  kind,  using  the  curved  lines,  and  I 
require  them  to  originate  them. 

•  The  fourth  year  I  begin  triangles,  right  angles,  and  so  on.  Then  I 
continue  that  in  that  way  until  I  have  by  that  time  discovered  those 
who  have  peculiar  talent  for  drawing.     [Applause.] 

Miss  Bessie  Eggleston  :  How  do  you  teach  drawing  circles  and 
curves  ? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  We  first  begin  with  a  square,  and  then  draw  a 
circle  in  it  with  freehand.  After  this  year's  work  we  use  no  more 
measures,  and  no  rule. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  191 

Miss  Mary  Peek,  who  assists  in  drawing  from  casts  and  models, 
will  now  give  an  illustration  of  her  work.  Miss  Peek  has  been  a 
pupil  of  ours,  and  is  now  a  teacher. 

[Miss  Mary  Peek  and  Theodore  d'Estrella  gave  an  example  upon 
the  board  of  drawing  from  objects,  which  were  received  with  ap- 
plause.] 

Dr.  Peet  :  Is  this  slate  work  done  in  a  class? 

Dr.  Gillett:  No,  sir;  it  is  done  on  paper;  a  class  of  fifteen  or 
twenty  at  a  time  drawing  from  the  same  models  and  different  points 
of  view,  and  the  teacher  illustrates  it  on  the  blackboard. 

Mrs.  Griffith:  This  work  we  do  on  the  blackboard  with  charcoal 
and  crayon.  The  elementary  work  is  all  done  on  a  slate  until  per- 
haps the  last  month  in  the  year,  and  then  we  have  a  paper  some- 
thing of  the  size  of  a  commercial  note  sheet,  that  we  have  the  pupils 
use  with  a  pencil,  and  we  save  these  papers,  and,  at  the  end  of  the 
year,  looking  over  them  we  find  that  some  of  them  show  talent,  and 
the  best  of  them  are  selected,  and  the  pupil  is  taken  into  a  special 
class. 

Mr.  Gillespie  :  At  what  year  do  you  introduce  this  drawing  from 
model  ? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  That  depends  on  the  expertness  of  the  pupil. 
Right  at  once,  if  we  feel  that  they  are  able  to  go  at  it.  We  begin  with 
drawing  a  cone  at  first,  and  we  keep  the  pupils  on  that  until  we  find 
they  are  able  to  go  on  further. 

Dr.  Peet:  Is  this  a  part  of  the  fifteen-minute  exercise? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  No,  sir.  Miss  Patten  carried  us  as  far  as  we  go  in 
the  fifteen-minute  exercise.  Then,  after  that,  they  are  brought  up 
into  the  several  classes,  where  we  teach  them  from  one  to  two  hours 
a  day;  one  hour,  perhaps,  for  two  or  three  years,  unless  we  see  that 
they  are  going  to  make  something  of  it  after  they  leave  us,  and  then 
we  give  them  two  hours  daily. 

Dr.  Peet:  How  large  a  proportion  do  you  so  promote? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  We  take  all  pupils  for  the  three  years,  and  give 
them  this  elementary  drawing,  and  we  have  about  sixty  pupils  out  of 
the  three  hundred  in  the  special  class. 

Mr.  Gillespie  :  When  do  you  let  them  commence  to  make  pictures? 

Mrs.  Griffith:  We  keep  them  for  two  or  three  years  just  drawing 
from  models  and  from  casts.  We  allow  them  to  shade  in  the  second 
year  of  the  special  work — that  would  be  the  fifth  year— if  we  feel  that 
they  can  make  a  success  of  it.  We  are  governed  altogether  by  the 
apparent  progress  the  pupils  make.  We  have  no  rigid  rules  about  it. 
We  have  the  fifteen-minute  exercises,  for  all  the  pupils  in  the  school 
that  have  been  there  over  two  years,  in  their  class-room. 

For  the  last  two  years  we  have  carried  on  wood  engraving  very 
successfully,  and  we  have  here  some  specimens  of  it.  First,  the  pat- 
tern is  drawn  on  paper,  and  then  modeled  in  clay,  and  then  carved 
in  the  wood.  The  frame  I  show  you  is  engraved  out  of  cedar.  The 
face  in  the  frame  was  modeled  by  one  of  our  pupils,  first  in  clay,  to 
the  sitting  of  one  of  the  pupils,  and  is  a  very  truthful  likeness.  Then 
it  was  cast  in  plaster.  Mr.  Rogers  made  the  portrait,  which  I  show 
you.  Miss  Gallagher  had  charge  of  that  department,  and  she  will 
now  give  us  some  thoughts  upon  the  subject. 

Miss  Gallagher:  Wood  carving  is  supposed  to  be  the  oldest 
branch  of  art.  Probably  the  first  weapon  was  a  club,  and  the  first 
decoration  was  some  carving  on  it.     It  is  a  branch  of  true  art,  having 


192  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

for  a  foundation  a  good  knowledge  of  drawing  and  an  intelligent 
idea  of  modeling.  It  has  been  dignified  by  the  diligent  application 
and  serious  thought  of  some  of  the  best  artists  the  world  has  ever 
known.  *  *  *  Of  the  ancient  carvers  the  Egyptians  stand  first. 
On  account  of  this  being  a  comparatively  new  branch  of  work  among 
the  deaf  and  dumb,  I  had  written  in  this  paper  a  short  historical 
sketch  of  wood  carving — merely  to  show  to  what  an  extent  the  art 
had  been  carried  by  the  ancients— but  the  time  is  so  limited  that  I 
will  only  mention  one  statue,  which  is  Egyptian,  that  was  discov- 
ered by  Mariette,  during  his  excavations  at  Sakkarab.  It  is  of  wood, 
and  attributed  to  the  early  period  of  the  old  kingdom  of  Memphis. 
This  is,  probably,  the  oldest  statue  in  existence,  and  is  now  in  the 
museum  at  Boulaz.  The  wood  used  by  the  ancients  was  usually  syc- 
amore, cedar,  cypress,  walnut,  and  ebony,  were  often  inlaid  with  ivory, 
agates,  hammered  silver,  etc.,  and  in  South  Kensington  Museum  are 
beautiful  specimens  of  this  work. 

Most  ethnographical  collections  have  carvings  from  different  coun- 
tries— Greece,  Germany,  France,  Mexico,  New  Zealand,  Polynesia, 
Persia,  Japan,  China,  Spain,  and  Switzerland  being  represented. 
These  references  are  sufficient  to  show  that  this  subject  has  been  prac- 
tically studied,  from  the  reign  of  Menes  to  the  present  time,  and  we 
will  leave  these  countries — ancient  Greece,  artistic  Italy,  substantial 
Germany,  extravagant  France,  and  industrious  Switzerland — to  see 
what  the  possibilities  are  for  America  in  this  branch  of  art,  and  more 
particularly  what  benefit  it  may  be  to  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  this 
country.  We  know  there  is  a  demand  for  it.  Our  handsomely  fur- 
nished city  houses  to-day  are  no  more  complete  without  their  carved 
furniture,  newel  posts,  etc.,  than  they  would  be  without  a  piano, 
library,  or  fireplace,  with  brass  andirons,  in  the  hall.  They  are  ceas- 
ing to  be  luxuries  and  growing  more,  each  year,  to  be  necessities. 

When  our  country  was  discovered  there  was  no  demand  for  deaf 
and  dumb  institutions,  sleeping  cars,  or  carved  tables.  But  soon 
deaf  and  dumb  institutions  were  necessary  and  a  Dr.  Gallaudet  was 
found;  sleeping  cars  were  needed  and  introduced.  Other  luxuries 
are  fast  becoming  necessities,  and  some  one  will  reap  the  benefit. 
Why  should  not  the  deaf  and  dumb  have  an  opportunity  to  do  it? 

It  has  been  said,  "Industrial  products  are  unlike  bread,  of  which 
enough  is  enough."  Of  industrial  products  we  want  all  we  know  of, 
all  we  have  heard  of,  as  fast  as  invented.  Alexander  the  Great  never 
craved  a  watch,  or  our  great  grandmother  a  sewing  machine,  because 
there  were  none;  but  times  have  changed  since  then,  and  instead  of 
nineteen  out  of  twenty  men  being  farmers,  as  was  the  case  a  hundred 
years  ago,  the  proportion  of  farmers  has  decreased  as  steadily  as  the 
number  engaged  in  industrial  pursuits  has  increased.  Showing, 
again,  "  enough  bread  is  enough." 

The  demand  for  skilled  labor  cannot  be  made  more  prominent,  I 
think,  than  by  calling  attention  to  the  manual  training  schools  which 
are  being  established  all  over  the  country.  Some  may  think  that  if 
all  children  are  to  be  taught  the  use  of  tools  that  the  mutes  cannot 
compete  with  them.  While  the  standard  of  work  will  be  raised  it  is 
not  to  be  supposed  that  many  boys  or  girls  will  excel  in  such  branches 
as  wood  carving,  without  more  lessons  than  they  will  receive  in  these 
manual  training  schools;  or,  if  they  should,  all  we  have  to  do  is  to 
raise  the  standard  again.  There  lias  always  been  found  room  up 
higher. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  193 

Our  industries  are  waiting  for  more  skill,  and  are  willing  to  pay 
for  it.  There  is  no  danger  of  skilled  labor  becoming  common.  Skill 
breeds  diversity  of  employment  and  originality.  There  are  a  plenty 
of  laborers  in  the  country,  but  not  many  skilled,  intelligent  ones. 
As  Colonel  Jacobson  says,  a  boy  in  Ireland  will  grow  up  to  shovel 
and  dig  at  $1  a  day.  His  son,  born  in  Toledo,  will  learn  to  read  and 
write,  and,  with  some  mechanical  skill,  will  earn  $2  a  day.  His  son 
may  go  to  the  Toledo  Manual  Training  School  and  earn  afterwards 
his  $3  to  $5  a  day.  Anaxagoras  spoke  well  when  he  said,  "  Man  was 
the  wisest  of  animals,  because  he  had  hands;"  and  Bacon  when  he 
said,  "  Education  is  the  cultivation  of  a  legitimate  familiarity  betwixt 
the  mind  and  things." 

Our  mutes  have  the  advantage  of  most  speaking  children  from  the 
start,  in  that  they  are  taught  drawing,  which  is  the  key  of  all  branches 
of  art. 

Give  them  first  a  good  drilling  from  the  object  always.  Then  let 
them  begin  to  design.  Give  them  what  we  call  the  principles.  Curved 
lines  to  elaborate.  Always  let  them  be  warned  of  over  ornamenta- 
tion, by  seeing  how  nature  restricts  her  true  ornaments,  the  flowers, 
and  sprinkles  them  sparingly  contrasted  with  the  foliage.  Try  also 
to  have  the  design  suitable  to  the  piece  of  furniture  to  be  carved. 
Have  most  of  the  designs  conventional  (for  one  never  wearies  of  a 
well  executed  conventional  design)  bringing  in  the  realistic  as  spar- 
ingly as  does  nature  her  flowers.  Remember  as  construction  implies 
a  purpose,  utility  must  have  the  precedence  of  decoration. 

Then  let  the  pupil  have  enough  skill  with  clay  to  model  these  de- 
signs. Of  course  no  one  can  model  in  wood,  that  cannot  in  clay,  a 
much  more  bidable  medium.  You  may  draw  very  well  a  design,  but 
the  same  design  modeled  will  be  much  more  easily  comprehended. 
In  one  case  you  have  the  shadow  of  the  substance,  in  the  other  the 
substance  of  the  shadow. 

In  the  wood  carving  schools  in  Nuremberg  the  students  are  ex- 
pected to  model  in  clay  exclusively  for  half  a  year.  After  the  drawing 
and  modeling  are  mastered  well  enough  for  our  purpose,  take  a  well 
seasoned  panel  of  wood,  walnut,  oak,  cherry,  mahogany,  or  any  hard 
wood.  Take  first  some  simple  design,  say  half  a  diamond;  take  your 
skew  chisel  firmly  in  your  left  hand,  place  it  directly  on  your  line, 
inclining  it  outwardly,  so  when  you  hammer  with  the  mallet,  which 
you  have  taken  in  your  right  hand,  there  will  be  a  clean  beveled  edge 
cut.  Do  this  on  two  sides  of  the  design,  place  the  tool  obliquely  on 
the  third  side,  and  remove  the  wood  between  the  two  incisions,  and 
your  design  is  finished.  Repeat  this  many  times  till  you  can  cut  each 
side  with  one  stroke,  and  finish  with  one  more,  and  leave  your  edges 
smooth  and  clean.  In  no  profession  does  cleanliness  stand  nearer 
godliness  than  in  wood  carving. 

When  you  have  mastered  this  and  a  few  more  simple  patterns,  take 
a  more  elaborate  conventional  design,  treating  it  the  same  way.  By 
degrees  you  can  take  up  scroll  and  realistic  designs. 

If  the  mutes  are  taught  this  art  they  must  understand  it  is  work, 
not  play;  that  if  they  make  their  five  to  six  dollars  a  day  they  must 
do  the  work  well.  This  is  a  progressive  age,  but  philanthropists  are 
not  standing  around  on  every  corner  offering  big  pay  to  inferior  work- 
men because  they  have  an  infirmity.  It  costs  too  much  "  to  make  the 
wheels  go  round"  to  employ  inexperienced  workmen.  But  a  person 
13d 


194         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

who  is  a  designer,  cabinet  maker,  carver,  and  excels  in  these  things, 
will  be  sought  for,  and  paid  well. 

A  designer  and  carver  only  stands  high  up  on  the  pay  roll,  and  our 
deaf  boys  and  girls  may  as  well  stand  there  as  any  one  else.  I  say 
girls,  because  girls  wisely  do  not  always  stay  within  the  limits  men 
make  for  them,  and  in  carving  have  been  almost,  if  not  quite  as  suc- 
cessful as  men. 

Almost  all  the  fine  furniture  is  carved  more  or  less.  Every  large 
furniture  store  has  its  own  designers  and  carvers,  and  the  places  are 
open  to  the  best.  This  opens  to  our  mutes  an  avenue  long  and  broad ; 
one,  it  seems  to  me,  particularly  adapted  to  them.  One  in  which, 
with  industry  and  perseverance,  they  can  literally  carve  out  for 
themselves  an  independent  living  and  happy  life. 

Mrs.  Griffith:  I  will  ask  Miss  Jameson,  of  the  Wisconsin  institu- 
tion, to  give  us  some  information  as  to  her  manner  of  teaching  art. 

DESIGNING. 

Miss  M.  Jameson:  So  much  has  been  said  in  regard  to  manual  labor 
as  an  element  in  the  instruction  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  and  it  is  such 
an  important  branch  of  education,  that  I  wish  to  present  for  your 
consideration  a  few  facts  in  regard  to  designing,  which  is  the  first 
step  in  the  direction  of  the  more  mechanical  arts.  To  design  is  to 
arrange  with  definite  mathematical  proportions  certain  lines,  figures, 
or  conventional  forms  into  a  harmonious  whole.  In  speaking  of  this 
subject,  recently,  Philip  Gilbert  Hamerton  said:  "The  eye  which  is 
trained  for  drawing  discerns  form  everywhere  and  in  everything,  and 
the  hand  which  is  skilled  to  use  the  pencil  will  be  generally  superior 
in  delicacy  and  accuracy  of  touch  to  the  hand  which  has  never  been 
taught.  There  are  a  thousand  things  to  be  done  in  ordinary  life,  in 
different  trades  and  professions,  in  which  accurate  sight  and  sure 
touch  are  desirable;  so  that  a  branch  of  education  which  gives  these 
has  so  much  more  in  its  favor." 

There  are  three  things,  therefore,  that  are  absolutely  necessary  to 
insure  success:  First,  a  trained  mind  to  remember  form;  second,  a 
trained  eye  to  observe  it;  third,  a  trained  hand  to  execute  and  obey 
the  mind. 

But  a  question  immediately  suggests  itself,  what  is  the  best  way  to 
accomplish  this  training,  especially  in  a  child?  While  we  have  in 
view  the  ultimate  purpose  of  giving  him  a  thorough  knowledge  of  art 
principles,  we  have  also  in  view  the  general  discipline  of  his  powers, 
and  a  method  which  will  at  once  teach  him  to  plan,  to  observe,  and 
to  execute,  is  in  all  respects  the  best  one  for  our  use.  We  think  we 
have  found  designing  to  accomplish  our  ends. 

To  gain  any  degree  of  skill  in  any  kind  of  work  much  more  prac- 
tice in  fundamental  principles  is  necessary  than  a  child  is  willing  to 
give,  be  he  deaf  and  dumb  or  possessed  of 

MORE   THAN   ORDINARY   FACULTIES. 

It  is  true  some  are  born  skillful,  and  some  achieve  skill,  but  by  far 
the  greater  part  are  of  ordinary  capacity  and  have  skill  thrust  upon 
them  by  the  unwearying  efforts  of  a  careful  teacher,  who  is  usually 
limited  for  time.  With  twenty  pupils  and  twenty  minutes  a  day,  how 
can  she  accomplish  it?    My  method  has  been  simple,  perhaps  faulty; 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  195 

still  let  us  give  it  a  critical  study  and  see  how  it  answers  the  purpose. 
Beginning  with  the  drawing  of  straight  lines,  perpendicular,  and  hori- 
zontal upon  the  blackboard ;  in  the  practice  of  which  a  perfect  square, 
without  rule  or  measure,  is  the  first  step.  Every  child  can  draw  a 
square.  Oh,  but  can  he?  He  will  do  it  a  great  many  times  before  it 
is  a  perfect  square.  Thorough  drill  in  measurement  by  the  eye  is 
necessary,  and  the  child  who  can  accomplish  it  without  work  is  a 
genius.  When  he  can  draw  it  unfailingly  his  eye  has  begun  its 
training.  This  square  is  taken  as  a  foundation,  and  it  is  divided  into 
different  parts  as  the  will  of  the  designer  dictates.  These  lines  are 
traced  and  upon  them  the  completed  design  in  whiter  chalk  stands 
out.  First  simple  geometrical  figures  are  made,  but  the  object  of  the 
teacher  will  be  lost  if  only  the  conventional  idea  remains  with  the 
pupil.  The  observation  and  recognition  of  form  is  the  aim,  and  this 
must  not  be  lost  sight  of.  As  the  hand  becomes  accustomed  to  draw- 
ing on  such  a  large  scale,  step  by  step  the  lessons  introduce  parallel 
lines,  curved  lines,  circles,  and  an  infinite  variety  of  forms  such  as  we 
can  always  find  in  wall  paper,  oilcloth,  and  carpets,  however,  illus- 
trating frequently  by  objects  in  and  near  the  studio  which  are  not 
artificial. 

To  do  this  the  hand  must,  of  necessity,  have  a  great  deal  of  prac- 
tice; in  fact,  it  receives  its  training  in  accuracy  while  following  the 
design  which  the  mind  has  previously  formed.  These  exercises  must 
be  varied  by  original  work,  in  which  every  child  having,  a  uniform 
foundation  to  begin  upon,  follows  out  some  idea  of  hi?  own,  which  in 
a  short  time  he  will  be  able  to  do;  though  at  first  he  will  only  try  to 
improve  upon  his  teacher's  work,  which  shows  that  at  least  his  mind 
is  at  work  grasping  the  idea  of  remembering  form.  It  will  be  crude 
and  unsatisfactory  work  at  first,  but  by  pointing  out  and  suggesting 
forms  the  progress  is  made. 

This  method,  while  keeping  the  attention  fixed  upon  the  new  de- 
sign, gives  the  eye  an  admirable  drill  in  measurement,  and  the  hand 
is  actively  employed  in  drawing,  again  and  again,  a  few  simple  lines, 
arranged  in  all  possible  positions,  so  that  remarkable  accuracy  is 
obtained,  as  well  as  a  breadth  which  the  child  will  never  forget. 
Designing  awakens  the  faculty  of  observation,  and  teaches  the  won- 
dering pupil  that  there  is  form  everywhere,  while  it  inspires  him  not 
only  to  imitate  old  form,  but  to  create  new  for  himself.  When  a  cer- 
tain degree  of  proficiency  has  been  attained,  natural  forms  should  be 
substituted,  for  nothing  is  so  undesirable  as  any  cut-and-dried  dia- 
gram work  for  children.  Still,  with  the  deaf  and  dumb,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  follow  a  method,  for  they  are  not  like  other  children,  and  in 
the"  multiplicity  of  a  confusion  of  ideas,  they  are  apt  to  lose  sight  of 
the  object  in  view.  With  their  memory  drawing  I  have  sometimes 
been  amused,  for  the  form  of  their  spoons  and  forks,  as  well  as  plates, 
have  been  woven  into  these  designs.  In  a  school  where  technical 
instruction  is  given  with  a  view  to  practical  application,  designing 
may  be  carired  on  indefinitely;  and  as  a  foundation  for  wood  carving 
and  carpentering,  as  well  as  architecture,  it  is  indispensable. 

Too  much  stress  cannot  be  laid  upon  the  necessity  of  throwing  the 
pupil  upon  his  own  resources.  No  helps  of  any  kind  should  ever 
be  allowed,  for  to  use  them  will  still  the  vigor  of  the  young  hand; 
and  a  child  who  becomes  dependent  upon  copies  and  measures,  will 
never  be  able  to  do  without  them.    This  applies  to  the  general  study 


196  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

of  art,  as  well  as  to  the  common  application  of  art  principles  in  man- 
ual labor. 

Miss  M.  Jameson  (after  reading  the  paper):  I  will  give  the  outline 
of  the  work  that  is  carried  on  in  my  school,  and,  also,  some  points 
which  have  given  me  a  great  deal  of  help  in  practicing  with  my 
children. 

The  Delevan  Art  School  was  established  about  three  years  ago,  and 
out  of  the  whole  number  of  pupils  in  the  school — two  hundred — one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  are  regularly  and  systematically  taught 
drawing.  We  have  about  one  hundred  pupils  in  the  lower  grades, 
and  about  twenty-five  could  be  called  advanced  pupils,  though  they 
are  not  more  than  thirteen  to  fifteen  years  of  age.  If  the}'  stay  as 
long  as  eight  years  we  sometimes  give  them  work  in  water  colors  and 
in  oil  colors.  Of  these  we  have  had  a  few,  but  very  few.  In  our 
lower  grades  the  work  is  almost  wholly  limited  to  blackboard  work 
and  freehand  drawing.  They  are  taught  to  draw  first  simple  designs; 
then  the  work  from  objects,  limited  to  blackboard  work,  without 
being  allowed  the  use  of  a  ruler,  or  any  measure  of  any  kind.  It  is 
wholly  freehand,  and  they  are  taught  in  the  first  place  to  measure 
from  the  eye  wholly. 

In  the  advanced  work  the  children  are  taught  first  the  simplest 
forms  of  designing,  and  then  they  go  through  designing  from  object 
drawing,  perhaps  in  charcoal,  or  perhaps  in  crayon,  and  are  advanced 
from  crayon  drawing,  as  the  teacher  sees  fit.  The  work  is  fitted  to 
the  individual  needs  of  the  pupils. 

There  are  four  points  which  I  have  found  of  great  help  in  my  work 
with  young  children,  and  the  first  is  perspective.  In  some  of  the 
eastern  schools  I  have  understood  they  do  not  pay  much  attention  to 
perspective,  saying  that  it  is  unnecessary,  and  that  it  is  very  hard  to 
explain  the  principle.  I  find  that  the  explanation  of  principle  is  un- 
necessary with  the  deaf  and  dumb;  that  by  showing  and  giving  them 
illustrations  they  can  very  easily  be  taught  so  that  they  can  put  these 
principles  in  practice,  and  not  have  anything  to  do  with  the  explan- 
ation of  rules.  I  have  my  pupils  draw  pictures  of  objects  with  which 
they  are  very  familiar,  for  instance,  the  cheese  factory  which  stands 
very  near  the  institution,  and  they  are  required  to  draw  that  with  exag- 
gerated perspective,  so  that  they  can  see  for  themselves  in  a  very 
short  time  the  axiom  that  the  nearer  objects  are  to  your  eye  the  larger 
they  become. 

Then  the  second  point  is  the  matter  of  class  criticism.  Children  are 
very  certain  to  learn  a  great  deal  quicker  from  being  able  to  criticise 
the  mistakes  of  others,  than  to  have  the  criticisms  of  the  teacher  alone. 
I  criticise  all  the  work  of  my  pupils  before  the  class,  but  generally,  as 
a  class  stands  around  the  room,  stop  on  one  lesson,  and  each  correct 
the  lesson  of  the  next  scholar.     In  that  way  they  gain  a  great  deal. 

The  third  point  is  drawing  from  memory.  Deaf  mutes  are  so 
limited  in  their  means  of  communication  with  outsiders  that  if  they 
can  gain  a  rapid  means  of  communication  it  is  a  great  help  to  them. 
I  try  to  have  all  of  my  pupils  remember  what  they  see  when  they  go 
outside  the  school.  One  of  my  exercises  is  to  come  before  the  class 
with  something  which  has  been  seen  outside. 

The  fourth  point  is  the  public  exhibition  of  work.  I  think  that  is 
one  of  the  greatest  helps  that  we  have  found  in  our  school,  to  have 
all,  or  portions  of  all,  the  work  that  has  been  done  during  the  year 
shown  at  the  close  of  the  year.    I  do  not  think  it  is  a  good  plan  to 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  197 

make  particular  preparation  for  exhibition  by  having  work  done 
towards  the  last  of  the  year  for  exhibition.  I  think  the  children 
should  be  made  to  understand  that  work  taken  from  their  lessons 
from  time  to  time,  will  be  before  the  public. 

Every  Superintendent,  I  presume,  finds  great  difficulty  in  arrang- 
ing for  a  special  time  for  the  special  pupils  who  come  out  of  the  class 
to  be  put  into  extra  classes— the  special  classes,  we  call  them.  It 
seems  as  though  some  arrangement  could  be  made  by  which  teachers 
might  have  more  of  these  special  classes.  We  are  all  of  us  very  much 
troubled  to  find  time  for  these  advanced  pupils  who  are  brighter,  and 
ought  .not  to  be  kept  back  with  the  lazy  ones.  Perhaps  some  one 
could  make  a  suggestion  as  to  how  that  could  be  accomplished. 

Dr.  Gillett:  We  sacrifice  the  shops  to  that. 

Dr.  Peet:  I  think  that  is  legitimate,  because  they  are  connected— 
both  relating  to  manual  skill. 

Madame  Le  Prince,  of  New  York,  then  read  the  following  paper, 
which  was  received  with  applause: 

Mr.  Ely's  questions  are,  "  When  shall  we  begin  in  art  training? 
What  shall  we  undertake  first?  What  direction  shall  be  given  to 
pupils'  work,  and  how  much  shall  we  expect  of  them  ?" 

May  I  reply  to  these  questions  by  discussing  another? 

TECHNICAL   ART  TRAINING. 

The  study  of  technical  art  is,  or  should  be,  the  foundation  of  the 
industrial  arts.  Sound  drawing  is,  or  should  be,  the  foundation  of 
technical  art.  By  the  term  technical  art,  I  would  include  not  only  a 
knowledge  of  the  various  mediums,  colors,  process,  etc.,  used  in  the 
industrial  arts,  but  also  a  careful  and  intelligent  study  of  the  best,  or 
copies  of  the  best,  works  produced  by  leading  artists  and  artisans  from 
ancient  to  modern  times.  This  knowledge  is  to  the  art  teacher,  stu- 
dent, or  would  be  skilled  artisan,  precisely  what  the  study  of  ancient 
and  modern  classics  is  to  the  writer,  historian,  or  poet.  It  provides 
safe  models  for  those  who  can  but  copy,  suggests  adaptations  without 
limit  to  the  more  gifted,  and  chastens  and  ennobles  the  original 
design  and  invention  of  the  few. 

How  can  we  best  attain  this  knowledge  and  transmit  it  to  our  pupils? 
What  is  the  condition  of  our  art  libriaries  for  the  deaf,  as  regards 
practical  text-books  and  examples  of  art  applied  to  industry?  Again, 
is  it  not  our  duty  as  art  teachers  to  become  acquainted  with  the  art 
treasures  and  their  owners  within  a  reasonable  range  of  our  studios, 
and  to  seize  every  opportunity  to  obtain  permission  for  our  pupils  to 
visit  public,  private,  or  trade  collections,  or  exhibitions  of  artistic 
work? 

Art  practiced  as  it  should  be  in  our  institutions  would  prove  not 
only  a  valuable  advertisement,  but  also  a  successful  lever  in  winning 
for  them  public  attention  and  favor. 

Thanks  to  the  public  exhibitions  of  the  last  twenty  years,  the  edu- 
cational departments  of  leading  European  nations  have  awakened  to 
the  value  of  elementary  and  technical  art  training,  and  every  step  in 
advance  taken  by  one  nation  is  keenly  observed,  and  if  successful,  or 
likely  to  be,  quickly  adopted  by  the  others. 

Until  recently  the  public  mind  has  failed  to  grasp  the  value  and 
practical  utility  of  art  applied  to  industry.  It  has  classed  drawing 
among  the  mere  adjuncts  of  a  higher  education,  or  as  an  accomplish- 


198  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

ment  for  young  ladies  in  fashionable  boarding  schools,  or,  at  the  best, 
connected  talent  for  drawing  with  special  genius,  and  accorded  to  it 
but  one  career — that  of  the  artist. 

I  believe  the  rapid  change  in  public  opinion  in  reference  to  the 
artist's  profession,  socially  and  pecuniarily,  to  be  a  foreshadowing  of 
the  increased  consideration  and  respect  about  to  be  shown  to  sound 
drawing,  not  only  as  a  means  of  education,  but  of  practical  utility  in 
after  life. 

To  help  achieve  this,  we  art  teachers  must  rid  our  minds  of  ethics 
and  sentiment,  and  lovely  words  and  ideas  about  art,  and  teach  our 
pupils  to  be  precise  and  swift  in  execution,  true  to  nature,  and  obedi- 
ent to  the  broad  principles  of  art  which  forbid  beauty  to  trench  on 
utility. 

It  is  so  far  from  being  true  that  art  leads  to  but  one  career — the 
artist's — that  in  nine  of  ten  trades  or  professions  drawing  in  some 
form  or  other  is  a  necessity  or  a  help.  I  do  not  believe  it  would  be  a 
hindrance  to  the  tenth. 

America  is  justly  proud  of  her  national  schools,  and  colleges,  and 
institutions,  and  will  not  lag  behind,  but  strive  to  surpass  other 
nations.  The  science,  or  rather  its  practical  application,  in  our  day 
schools,  is  new,  good  teachers  are  few,  and,  true  to  her  unmatched 
mechanical  instincts,  America  seeks  a  "  sjrstem."  I  believe  we  are  here 
to-day  to  seek  and  find  a  "  system  "  adapted  to  the  capacities  of  deaf- 
mutes,  but  I  fear  all  search  after  a  perfect  system  will  end  like  that 
after  the  philosopher's  stone.  I  believe  the  most  admirable  quality 
of  a  "system"  to  be  its  elasticity.  May  I  quote  the  words  of  a  teacher 
who  is  an  ornament  to  your  profession,  Miss  Ida  Montgomery,  mistress 
of  our  New  York  institution's  high  class  for  girls?  "When  I  com- 
menced teaching  I  knew  a  great  deal;  I  had  lovely  theories;  I  had 
observed  deaf-mutes  profoundly,  and  elaborated  a  wonderful  system 
for  their  education;  I  could  have  read  you  a  paper  then — but  now,  alas! 
twenty-one  years  of  the  school-room  have  knocked  my  theories  into 
cocked  hats,  and  my  '  system '  went  to  pieces  long  ago,  like  the  '  dea- 
con's one-horse  shay.'  One  road,  straight,  and  broad,  is  open  to  us, 
and  I  know  that  success  lies  in  it.  Let  us  learn  '  to  see,'  and  teach  '  see- 
ing' to  our  young  pupils." 

A  child  draws  by  instinct;  he  can  draw,  and  loves  to  draw,  long 
before  he  can  write,  or  has  the  slighest  desire  to  write.  How  are  we 
developing  this  instinct?  An  American  guide  book  to  public  school 
teaching  (or  teachers)  recommendssimple  geometric  outlines  for  first 
practice,  on  the  plea  that  these  are  a  correct  basis  for  further  devel- 
opment. Would  a  teacher  of  English  be  considered  reasonable  if 
she  gave  her  babies  Greek  and  Latin  roots  to  learn  because  they  are 
the  foundation  of  the  English  language?  The  same  book  bids  the 
teacher  have  beginners  spell  first  the  names  of  familiar  objects,  and 
advises  the  use  of  familiar  illustrations  to  assist  the  mind  in  its  first 
struggle  with  the  difficulties  of  arithmetic.  Is  this  quite  logical,  or 
fair?  Why  in  this  matter  of  drawing  should  we  confine  our  chil- 
dren's tender  fancy  and  quick  imagination  within  geometric  limits? 
Why  throw  away  the  wealth  of  aid  in  teaching  that  pictorial  draw- 
ing affords? 

I  am  aware  that  if  a  child  loves  his  teacher  well  enough,  he  can  be 
made  to  attack  valiantly  a  whole  army  of  triangles,  pentagons,  hexa- 
gons, etc.,  right  on  to  ellipses  with  transverse  and  conjugate  diame- 
ters.   But  is  it  well  for  the  child,  at  its  freshest,  most  eager,  and 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DEAF.  199 

receptive  age,  to  be  chilled  by  such  barebones  of  art?  I  believe  there 
is  a  better,  because  more  natural  and  less  abstract  wav.  Carry  real 
things  into  your  class-room;  an  egg,  for  example.  Call  attention  to 
the  beauty  and  smoothness  of  its  unbroken  curve;  hold  it  between 
your  children  and  the  daylight;  then  in  front  of  a  darker  back- 
ground, that  they  may  see  for  themselves  how  a  change  in  the  condi- 
tion of  its  surroundings  varies  the  play  of  light  and  shade  on  its 
surface.  Then  let  your  children  watch  you  draw  an  egg— back- 
ground, foreground,  light,  shadow,  and  reflected  light  [illustration  by 
charcoal  and  white  chalk  on  slate],  the  larger  the  better,  call  it  an 
ostrich's  egg  if  you  like;  never  mind  about  construction  lines  and 
their  long,  hard  names.  Now,  give  your  children  charcoal  and  white 
chalk  and  let  them  try.  In  ten  minutes,  that  is  when  they  have  dis- 
covered for  themselves  the  difficulty  of  drawing  without  construction 
lines,  attract  the  attention  of  group  after  group  and  explain  to  them 
your  practical  working  methods.  Amuse  your  children  while  instruct- 
ing them.  If  you  find  a  child  in  despair  over  an  egg  quite  too  shaky 
in  outline,  break  it  even  a  little  more  for  him,  and  make  a  tiny  head 
peep  out  from  the  breakage;  little  feet,  too,  if  need  be,  and  your 
pupil's  face  will  change  from  despair  to  delight.  Now,  make  use  of 
your  constructive  methods  for  an  ellipse,  by  fitting  a  bird's  nest  in  a 
tree  branch.  Draw  your  lines  upwards,  downwards,  across,  and  per- 
spectively.  Hold  up  a  cup,  or  some  such  hollow  vessel,  and  call 
attention  to  the  perspective  changes  occurring  as  height  and  position 
vary,  and  to  how  lights  and  shadows  fall  on  rounded  hollow  bodies. 
Mark  strongly,  in  black  and  white,  on  your  drawing  of  a  nest,  these 
facts  of  appearance  in  nature,  not  forgetting  little  twigs,  and  bits  of 
moss,  and  tiny  eggs,  and,  if  you  have  time,  a  mother  bird  watching — 
then  leave  your  little  ones  to  do  as  much  as  they  can.  It  is  all  the 
better  if  you  can  bring  to  your  lesson  a  real  nest,  with  real  eggs.  Let 
a  lesson  in  clay  work,  on  same  subject,  follow  this  study  of  light  and 
shade  and  facts  in  nature;  and  at  a  third  lesson,  if  you  can  procure 
them,  give  cheap  outline  wood  cuts  of  similar  subjects  to  your  chil- 
dren to  tint  in  water  color.  (It  is  a  good  way  in  which  to  use  up  old 
time  drawing  books.)  Give  warm  praise  to  those  who  use  soft,  well 
blending  tints,  and  have  not  overrun  the  given  lines.  Tell  them 
which  colors  best  set  off  other  colors,  and  give  practical  illustration 
of  your  color  theories  by  means  of  colored  chalks  or  pretty  ribbons. 
I  am  far  from  having  measured  the  possibilities  of  this  kind  of 
teaching,  but  so  far  the  results  have  startled  me,  and  confirmed  my 
impression  that  mere  outlines  are  to  drawing  as  shorthand  to  writing, 
good  when  one  knows.  When  a  child  looks  at  an  object  he  does  not 
see  "  outlines,"  he  sees  masses  of  light  and  shade;  why  strive  to  teach 
him  art  in  the  abstract,  instead  of  training  eye  and  hand  to  reproduce 
the  things  he  sees  as  he  sees  them,  and  his  heart  to  take  in  to  the  full 
these  beauties  in  appearance.  Geometric  drawing  cannot  do  this,  and 
should  come  in  later. 

Our  institutions  for  the  deaf  afford  special  facilities  by  large  slates, 
and  unlimited  white  chalk;  these,  with  charcoal,  clay,  a  few  non- 
poisonous  water  colors  and  camel's  hair  brushes,  with  a  plenty  of 
knowledge  and  energy  on  the  teacher's  side,  should  suffice  for  pri- 
mary classes.  On  entering  the  New  York  school  I  found  a  tendency 
to  produce  caricatures  that  varied  only  in  the  measure  of  ugliness. 
You  will  agree  with  me  that  this  should  be  put  down,  and  our  pupils 
taught  that  caricatures  lacking  elements  of  truth  and  beauty  are  to 


200  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

art  as  sin  to  morals.  Passing  from  primary  to  succeeding  classes,  I 
have  found  the  cross-grained  French  charcoal  paper  and  charcoal  to 
be  best  adapted  to  study  from  the  "round;"  geometric  solids,  Greek 
vases,  etc.,  together  with  familiar  objects  taken  from  house  and  work- 
shops. It  is  needful  to  vary  this  work  by  giving  out  words  for  origi- 
nal illustration  in  pen  and  ink.  Charcoal  permits  breadth  and 
freedom  in  handling  and  for  erasure;  original  sketches  in  pen  and 
ink  necessitate  forethought  and  precision.  We  use  lithograph  copies 
in  our  class-room  to  but  one  end;  it  is  this,  that  in  case  of  failure,  or 
over-confidence,  our  pupils  may  compare  their  own  productions  with 
those  of  better  men.  We  do  not  permit  the  copying  of  lithographs, 
believing  that  such  copying  adds  no  more  to  a  pupil's  knowledge 
than  the  mere  copying  of  a  poet's  handwriting  would  enable  one  to 
appreciate  his  poetry.  May  I  speak  even  more  strongly?  I  believe 
this  copying  of  lithographs  to  be  a  positive  evil,  twofold;  it  helps  to 
propagate  false  and  impractical  notions  of  art,  and  becomes  mere 
food  for  vanity  on  the  part  of  pupils  and  parents — and,  if  I  dared,  I 
would  say  Superintendents  of  deaf-mute  institutions!  Better  no  art 
at  all  than  a  false,  demoralizing  art. 

From  out  our  second  grade  of  pupils  we  pass  the  apparently  gifted 
into  a  "special  testing  or  training  class,"  previous  to  admitting  them 
into  our  "working  studios"  for  boys  and  for  girls.  In  these  studios 
we  teach  art-crafts  during  workshop  hours.  We  have  but  one  mixed 
class;  it  is  our  life  class,  and  so  far  has  been  the  most  serious.  We 
are  scarcely  ripe  for  it,  but  it  is  an  excellent  corrective.  It  gives  to 
those  considered  by  themselves  and  companions  as  rather  above  the 
average  "  smartness,"  a  vivid  sense  of  no  success  without  earnest  effort, 
and  leaves  them  sobered  and  strengthened.  So  far  it  has  been  well 
with  us  as  a  young  studio,  and  comparatively,  but  you  and  I  and  all 
art  teachers  of  to-day  have  a  problem  to  solve.  It  is  this:  How  best 
to  make  art  enhance  the  value  of  mercantile  produce.  Were  I  quite 
American  I  should  put  it  this  Way:  How  can  America  keep  within 
her  shores  the  immense  sums  she  spends  yearly  on  foreign  art  pro- 
duce? By  giving  to  her  children  and  artisans  practical  art  culture. 
Oarlyle  says,  "Your  America  is  here  or  nowhere."  Do  the  duty 
which  lies  nearest  thee,  which  thou  knowest  to  be  a  duty;  thy  second 
duty  will  already  have  become  clearer.  Let  us  then  study  first  our 
workshop  needs.  If  our  art  departments  do  not  become  a  power  for 
good  in  these,  they  have  failed  in  their  mission. 

On  entering  the  New  York  school  I  fitted  my  art  department  to 
existing  conditions  of  class  organization  till  I  should  gain  experience 
in  deaf-mute  teaching,  and  earn  the  confidence  of  my  Directors  and 
Principal.  Next  term  I  have  Dr.  Peet's  consent  to  grade  my  draw- 
ing pupils  according  to  their  trades,  and  here  lies  the  pith  of  the 
matter.  It  is  not  so  much  fine  art  as  art  applied  to  industry  deaf- 
mute  institutions  require.  We  need  just  that  kind  of  art  training 
which  will  make  of  a  good  shoemaker  a  better  shoemaker,  and  of  our 
carpenters,  cabinet  makers,  and  carvers,  printers,  and  tailors,  more 
expert  and  precise  workmen. 

The  drawing  of  lilies  and  roses  may,  probably  will,  enable  a  shoe- 
maker to  place  his  stitches  more  evenly;  but  the  modeling  of  lasts 
to  measure,  and  careful  drawing  of  the  shapes  and  sizes  used  in  his 
trade,  ana  a  fair  knowledge  of  the  mechanism  of  the  human  foot 
would  help  him  better. 

We  need  in  our  studios  good  light  and  good  humor,  any  amount  of 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  201 

good  casts  and  examples,  order,  and  that  economy  in  choice  of 
material  which  proves  to  be  best  in  the  long  run.  We  need  the  vigor, 
discipline,  and  variety  that  comes  of  facing  squarely  nature,  art,  and 
the  needs  of  manufacture. 

The  New  Orleans  and  American  Institute  exhibits  have  helped  to 
prove  that  in  this  field  of  art  education  there  is  no  distinction  between 
the  deaf  and  hearing  children;  they  awarded  "distinction"  to  the 
deaf.  Would  it  not  be  false  kindness  to  our  pupils  to  exact  of  them 
less  than  from  hearing  speakers,  seeing  that  in  after  life  they  must  do 
good  work  more  swiftly  and  cheaply  than,  hearing  competitors,  if 
they  would  win  in  the  race  of  life. 

Dr.  Gillett:  How  soon  would  you  introduce  such  an  exercise  as 
you  have  given  first;  that  is,  the  egg  ? 

Madame  Le  Prince:  As  soon  as  the  child  enters  the  school.  I 
think  the  more  natural  the  system  with  little  children,  the  better. 

Dr.  Gillett:  You  reject  entirely  geometrical  drawing. 

Madame  Le  Prince:  At  first.  I  think  geometry  is  a  matter  of  rea- 
son, and  should  come  in  with  the  reason. 

Dr.  Gillett:  Have  you  any  particular  time  when  you  commence 
geometrical  instruction  ? 

Madame  Le  Prince:  When  the  children  leave  the  primary  classes, 
and  Dr.  Peet  thinks  they  are  fit  to  rise  higher  in  the  scale  of  instruc- 
tion, according  to  our  present  organization,  then  I  put  them  into  the 
special  classes.  I  commence  teaching  our  pupils  drawing  as  soon  as 
I  can,  the  first  day  they  enter  school.  The  most  successful  thing  we 
have  had  in  our  school  was  a  commencement  exercise  in  which  a 
drawing  bigger  than  herself  was  made  by  a  child  five  or  six  years  old. 

Mr.  Walker:  What  time  is  given  to  your  work  with  your  first 
pupils  ? 

Madame  Le  Prince:  Dr.  Peet  gives  me  for  each  pupil  one  hour 
a  week  for  primary  drawing.  Those  who  are  put  into  the  higher 
classes,  receive  one  hour  a  week  more.  As  soon  as  they  pass  into  the 
working  studios,  they  have  workshop  hours.  We  teach  one  hour  a 
week  for  each  class,  which  means  an  hour  for  each  pupil;  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty  pupils  once  a  week. 

Dr.  I.  L.  Peet:  I  will  explain  that  in  our  lip  reading  hour,  the 
fourth  hour  of  the  morning,  and  of  the  afternoon,  we  take  one  hour  a 
week  from  each  class  for  drawing.  Madame  Le  Prince  has  a  room 
especially  for  class  instruction,  and  each  class  is  assigned  a  day  in 
each  week,  always,  at  eleven  o'clock.  They  come  to  her  in  this  room, 
and  she  teaches  them  for  one  hour  a  week.  It  is  utterly  impossible 
for  her  to  go  through  so  many  classes  with  simply  one  hour  a  week, 
and  she  gives  two  hours  of  instructions  a  day  to  the  classes,  one  hour 
in  the  morning  and  one  in  the  afternoon.  The  next  week  the  teacher 
of  the  class  repeats  the  exercise  which  Madame  Le  Prince  gave  the 
week  before,  so  that  the  lesson  is  practically  repeated.  And  our  in- 
structors are  so  much  interested  in  this  matter  of  art  that  they  take  a 
lesson  from  Madame  Le  Prince  themselves  once  a  week,  every  Mon- 
day afternoon  for  an  hour  after  school,  and  they  all  learn  the  princi- 
ples of  drawing,  so  that  they  can  impart  them  to  their  classes.  The 
teachers  are  willing  to  do^his,  because  they  feel  as  if  it  was  exceeding 
important  to  the  deaf  and  dumb  to  learn  drawing;  and  they  feel  great 
pride  in  their  own  classes,  and  are  willing  and  anxious  to  assist  them. 

Dr.  Gillett:  Then  each  pupil  has  Madame  Le  Prince's  instruction 
one  hour  each  two  weeks. 


202  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

Dr.  Peet:  Yes,  sir;  but  has  a  drawing  lesson  one  hour  each  week. 
[Applause.] 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  should  like  to  ask  Madame  Le  Prince,  how 
many  pupils  she  has  had  all  in  one  class. 

Madame  Le  Prince:  Just  as  many  as  1  can  attend  to.  They  vary 
from  nine  to  thirty-two. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  How  many  should  you  like  to  have? 

Madame  Le  Prince:  As  few  as  possible. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  In  the  few  remarks  I  wished  to  make,  Miss  Jame- 
son has  stolen  all  of  my  thunder.  I  approve  of  her  method,  which 
is  exactly  the  one  that  I  follow  in  every  respect,  and  I  agree  with  her 
exactly.  I  think  it  has  had  admirable  results.  I  should  go  first  to 
the  little  ones  with  objects.  I  think  I  am  to  speak  on  mechanical 
drawing — drawing,  as  applied  to  the  industries,  and  the  results  shown. 

I  have  had  a  great  deal  of  experience  in  obtaining  positions  for 
some  of  our  boys,  and  I  have  been  astonished  at  the  ease  with  which 
I  could  obtain  a  position  for  a  boy  who  could  sit  down,  and,  for 
instance,  draw  a  cup  leaning  toward  him,  like  this.  [Showing.]  I 
have  also  had  one  man  who  wished  to  employ  a  boy,  take  out  his 
watch,  and  tell  him  to  draw  it  in  a  certain  position,  and  then  in 
another  position.  It  is  our  duty  to  teach  a  pupil  that  there  is  a  dif- 
ference between  a  watch  held  in  one  position  and  one  in  another.  I 
teach  my  pupils  to  draw  a  table,  for  instance,  in  its  different  positions. 
I  do  not  teach  them  the  art  of  perspective.  What  is  the  use?  I  simply 
take  a  table  and  show  it  to  them  in  one  position,  and  then  tip  it  a 
little,  and  thus  show  them  the  table  in  its  different  positions,  and, 
finally,  they  become  accustomed  to  seeing  things  reduced  to  a  level, 
and  in  that  way  make  very  rapid  progress.  Don't  take  pictures,  and 
don't  ever  put  your  pencil  on  a  scholar's  drawing.  [Applause.]  If 
you  do,  you  have  taken  away  the  open  sesame  for  that  child.  It  is 
something  for  that  child  to  take  up  a  picture,  and  when  asked,  "Did 
you  draw  that?"  to  answer,  "  Yes,  sir;  a  part  of  it."  "  Who  drew  it?" 
"My  teacher."  I  believe  the  deaf-mutes  are  the  most  honest  set  of 
children  I  ever  saw.  [Applause.]  I  believe  there  is  nothing  they 
wish  to  deceive  in,  and  particularly  about  their  own  work.  I  have 
seen  children  take  up  drawings  and  paintings,  and  throw  them  down 
with  that  expression.  I  have  also  seen  them  come  to  me  and  say  to 
me,  "I  did  that."  And  they  were  just  as  proud  of  it  as  if  it  was  the 
finest  in  the  land.  Why?  Because  their  own  hands  did  it.  You 
may  ask,  how  can  I  correct  them?  Suppose  a  boy  brings  me  a  draw- 
ing of  this  table.  I  say,  "That  is  wrong;  look  at'the  table,  and  draw 
it  the  best  you  can."  He  draws  it  again,  and  then  I  say,  "  Try  it 
again."  And  that  boy  will  try;  he  knows  I  will  not  touch  his  paper, 
and  he  will  try  and  try;  and  sometimes  he  will  succeed,  and  some- 
times not.  Sometimes  I  have  to  show  him  on  my  hand,  and  he  looks 
at  his  drawing  and  sees  where  the  mistake  is.  I  chalk  it  right  in  my 
hand,  and  allow  him  to  look  at  it  but  a  second;  and  he  takes  my  idea 
and  works  it  out  himself.     My  pencil  does  not  go  on  his  paper. 

When  it  comes  to  shading  the  same  plan  is  followed  out.  If  he  is 
drawing  an  egg,  he  may  get  the  shadow  right  where  the  high  light 
ought  to  be.  I  tell  him,  "You  have  got  everything  upside  down; 
that  won't  do."  He  thinks  it  is  very  strange.  I  simply  chalk  it  on 
my  hand  just  to  show  him  where  is  the  light,  and  where  the  shadow, 
and  then  I  rub  it  off  my  hand. 

Coming  to  mechanical  drawing,  I  shall  leave  out  entirely  what  I 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  203 

call  designing,  as  the  method  shown  by  Miss  Jameson  is  exactly  the 
method  I  follow.  I  would  like  to  add,  that  in  the  classes  I  have— 
from  eighteen  to  twenty  in  the  highest  class,  twelve  to  fourteen  in  the 
second,  and  about  ten  in  the  third — I  have  nothing  to  do  with  either 
water  or  oil  colors.  I  am  simply  working  for  an  end  in  a  different 
way.  The  artistic  point  of  view,  as  in  coloring,  I  have  nothing  to  do 
with.  I  am  simply  trying  to  give  them  an  idea  of  form,  measuring 
with  the  eye,  or  the  delicate  handling  of  their  fingers,  so  that  after- 
wards if  they  have  to  make  a  line  drawing  without  measurements 
they  would  be  able  to  do  it  with  instruction  from  their  master,  or 
their  "boss,"  as  they  call  it.  Take,  for  instance,  this  designing. 
Twice  a  week  I  have  a  class  one  hour  at  a  time — on  Tuesdays  and 
Thursdays.  They  bring  me  from  one  to  five  designs  drawn  on  com- 
mon manilla  paper,  original  designs  drawn  in  pencil.  On  Monday 
morning  they  bring  me  three  chosen  designs  that  I  have  chosen, 
from  all  those  drawn,  in  ink,  without  ruler,  without  measure,  and 
without  compass;  simply  freehand  drawing  in  ink.  Those  I  keep. 
At  the  end  of  the  year  I  take  all  of  these  ink  drawings  and  spread 
them  along  the  wall  with  pins,  and  ask  the  children  to  go  and  choose 
the  design  which  they  think  is  the  best  design  for  an  oilcloth,  or 
which  they  think  would  be  a  fine  design  for  a  frieze,  or  which  for  a 
book  cover  border,  skiver,  or  anything  that  I  happen  to  think  of  at 
the  time.  And  they  choose  their  own  designs  from  all  of  those  that 
have  been  drawn  by  everybody.  Then  I  say,  "  Work  that  up  into  a 
book  cover  border,  or  multiply  it."  The  drawings  are  generally  four 
inches  by  four  inches,  and  I  have  them  work  it  up  so  as  to  make  it 
ten  by  twelve,  so  that  it  will  make  a  square  foot  of  design  on  brown 
manilla  paper,  to  see  if  it  will  work  into  a  working  design. 

Then,  to  go  on  with  mechanical  drawing,  I  simply  begin  by  teach- 
ing them  to  draw  a  straight  line  with  the  ruler.  I  have  not  yet  seen 
a  child  in  our  school  that  could  do  it.  It  takes  at  least  a  month  to 
draw  a  line  to  satisfy  me,  even  with  a  ruler.  In  the  first  place  they 
do  not  know  how  to  sharpen  their  pencils,  and  it  takes  me  a  week  to 
teach  them  that  without  breaking  it  or  wasting  time.  They  must 
learn  to  prepare  their  tools,  because  when  they  get  into  work,  a  work- 
man is  known  by  his  tools.  When  they  get  to  work  they  must  have 
perfect  working  tools,  and  keep  them  in  perfect  order.  An  employer 
looks  at  a  boy,  and  sees  his  tools,  and  says,  "  I  will  take  that  boy," 
right  away.  And  this  is  my  experience  that  I  am  relating  now. 
Their  pencils  must  be  kept  in  perfect  order.  A  pencil,  a  six-eighths 
artist's  pencil,  a  little  compass,  a  straight  edge,  a  T  square,  a  drawing 
board,  and  a  triangle.  That  is  all  we  use.  Begin  by  teaching  them 
the  proper  use  of  those  tools,  how  to  hold  the  pencil  for  different  pur- 
poses, how  to  keep  that  pencil  sharp  with  a  needle  point  or  a  flat  edge 
for  certain  purposes,  and  then  teach  them  to  draw  a  straight  line.  You 
think  it  is  a  very  easy  thing  to  draw  a  straight  line  if  you  have  a  per- 
fectly straight  edge.  But  try  it.  The  line  must  be  mathematically 
straight.  After  they  have  drawn  a  clean  straight  line  on  brown 
manilla  paper,  I  say,  "  Draw  another  exactly  the  same  length,  and  do 
not  use  a  measure."  They  attempt  it,  and  some  of  them  do  pretty 
well  after  having  had  all  of  this  preliminary  training  m  designing, 
and  so  forth.  "  Now  take  your  compass  and  measure."  They  meas- 
ure, and  they  are  very  much  surprised  to  find  that  they  are  not 
exactly  of  the  same  length.  "  Make  them  the  same  length."  Then  I 
give  them  horizontal  lines,  vertical  lines,  and  perpendicular  lines, 


204  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

and  .then  we  go  on  with  the  different  angles,  the  right  angle,  the 
acute,  and  the  obtuse,  triangles,  squares,  parallel  lines,  and  so  forth, 
in  mechanical  drawing. 

What  is  this  for?  It  is  simply  to  give  them  absolute  precision. 
For  mechanical  drawing  the  work  must  be  exact.  This  mechanical 
drawing  I  bring  into  play  in  addition  to  this  designing.  In  drawing 
frieze  or  oilcloth  work  everything  has  to  be  exact,  and  particularly 
for  the  photogravure  process,  a  mechanical  process  which  we  have  in 
New  York,  and  which  some  of  our  boys  seem  peculiarly  fitted  for. 
I  advocate  the  use  of  color  in  every  school,  particularly  in  common 
object  drawing.  Last  year  I  obtained  places  for  three  different  boys, 
one  of  them  in  the  "  Puck"  office,  New  York.  They  seemed  to  treat 
me  very  coolly.  I  showed  them  his  pen  and  ink  mechanical  draw- 
ings, and  they  said,  "Yes,  they  are  very  good  indeed;  his  hand  is 
well  trained,  and  he  is  exact,  but  we  have  no  work  for  apprentices." 
I  said  to  them,  "I  wish  you  would  look  at  these  just  a  moment.  I 
know  you  use  color,"  and  I  opened  five  or  six  common  objects,  one  of 
which  was  a  beet,  and  he  said,  "That  changes  the  whole  thing.  We 
will  take  that  boy."  He  said,  "His  hand  is  trained,  and  he  has  an 
idea  of  color  and  form."  And  those  who  are  teaching  drawing  in 
our  schools,  to  this  practical  end,  will  find  it  of  invaluable  benefit  to 
the  deaf-mute.  I  do  not  believe  in  knocking  it  into  them,  but  those 
who  have  any  talent  at  all  they  will  be  so  well  paid  that  you  will 
never  regret  that  you  taught  it  in  a  practical  way.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  Moses:  I  think  the  last  speaker  has  struck  a  practical  note  in 
this  matter,  when  he  has  told  us  of  the  positions  he  has  secured  for 
pupils.  I  desire  to  ask  him  how  long  he  has  been  turning  out  gradu- 
ates from  this  school  in  this  way. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  do  not  know,  as  I  have  only  been  there  four 
years.  But  since  I  have  been  there  they  have  been  graduating  boys 
in  this  way,  and  we  have  found  positions  for  several  boys.  He  had 
been  in  training  in  this  branch  only  for  about  six  months.  It  is  a 
comparatively  new  thing  in  our  school;  it  has  not  been  over  six  or 
eight  years  that  particular  designing  and  industrial  drawing  has  been 
used  there,  as  far  as  I  know.     I  only  speak  for  the  last  four  years. 

Mr.  Moses:  What  proportion  of  the  young  men  that  go  out  from 
the  school  have  had  this  training? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  All  of  them  except  those  who  have  no  talent 
whatever  for  drawing.     Thej7  simply  have  the  drawing  lessons. 

Mr.  Moses:  What  proportion  of  the  pupils  who  go  out  so  trained 
are  able  to  get  positions  by  which  they  can  make  a  living? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  cannot  say,  but  every  one  I  have  tried  to  get  a 
position  for  has  got  it.     Here  I  can  refer  to  eight  or  ten. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  desire  to  ask  Professor  Elmendorf  how  long  his 
pupils  are  under  instruction  before  they  begin  mechanical  drawing? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  They  begin  mechanical  drawing  only  in  the  last 
three  years  of  the  course. 

Mr.  Crouter:  Is  this  work  of  teaching  drawing  in  addition  to 
your  other  duties? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  Yes,  sir;  two  hours  a  week  only.  About  three 
quarters  of  our  teachers  teach  drawing.    This  is  simply  a  specialty. 

Dr.  Peet:  Madame  Le  Prince  has  received  a  letter  from  Mr.  Black, 
of  the  Royal  Commission  for  the  Blind  and  the  Deaf  and  Dumb, 
London,  England,  and  there  occurs  this  passage  with  reference  to  this 
convention:  "This  commission  will  gladly  welcome  any  information 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  205 

bearing  on  their  inquiries,  and  any  resolution  emanating  from  the 
convention,  and  communicated  officially  to  this  commission,  would 
be  especially  valuable  in  the  eyes  of  this  commission."  This  is  in 
reference  to  art.  And  perhaps  the  proper  resolution  might  be  passed 
in  the  convention  this  afternoon. 

The  Chairman:  You  will  please  draw  up  such  resolution. 

The  next  subject  in  order  is  "  Oral  Instruction,"  to  be  led  by  Miss 
Laura  D.  Richards,  of  Philadelphia. 

Miss  Richards  then  read  the  following  paper  on  Oral  Instruction, 
which  was  received  with  great  applause: 

My  first  work  with  a  class  of  beginners  is  to  regulate  their  breath- 
ing. It  is  of  the  first  importance  in  securing  good,  firm  tones.  Most 
deaf  children  breathe  very  irregularly,  inhaling  and  expelling  the 
breath  through  the  nose  and  mouth  at  the  same  time,  and  when  it  is 
vocalized  they  must  therefore  give  nasal  tones.  Let  individual  drill 
be  given.  Have  each  child  come  to  you  and  exhale  and  expel  the 
breath  with  the  nasal  passage  closed,  thus  forming  the  habit  of  send- 
ing it  through  the  mouth  instead  of  the  nose.  Pupils  will  at  first 
breathe  *from  the  top  of  the  lungs,  and  very  feebly,  but  by  degrees 
they  will  breathe  deeper  and  firmer,  until  they  fill  the  lungs  and 
breathe  as  strong  as  necessary.  On  correct  breathing  depends  all 
voice  tones.  If  a  child  fills  its  lungs  and  can  hold  its  breath  well,  its 
voice  will  be  low,  strong,  and  firm;  but  when  it  breathes  only  from 
the  top  of  the  lungs,  its  voice  will  be  high  and  throaty.  I  continue 
this  breathing  exercise,  giving  it  twice  and  often  three  times  a  day, 
for  at  least  three  months.  After  that  I  give  it  once  a  day.  Let  me 
say  that  this  is  not  the  easiest  exercise  for  the  teacher;  but  proper 
breathing  is  of  such  importance  that  every  effort  should  be  made  to 
acquire  it.  Another  exercise  is  to  free  the  muscles  of  the  lips,  tongue, 
and  throat,  and  to  make  the  tongue  as  nearly  flat  as  possible.  If  the 
tongue  lies  flat  the  voice  can  pass  out  of  the  mouth  clear  and  full;  but 
if  it  is  drawn  back  into  the  back  part  of  the  mouth,  filling  the  throat 
(which  is  often  the  case),  the  voice  will  be  thick  and  disagreeable. 

In  conducting  this  exercise  each  child  should  be  provided  with  a 
hand  mirror,  and  all  perform  the  exercise  together. 

It  is  my  practice  to  go  through  each  exercise  myself,  then  have  the 
children  imitate  me.  It  is  always  better  to  give  them  an  example  of 
what  you  want  them  to  do,  and  encourage  them  to  imitate  you,  than 
to  require  them  to  go  through  their  exercises  independently  and 
unguided. 

In  giving  the  vowels  I  have  found  it  better  to  begin  with  "  a," 
because  when  giving  it  the  tongue  lies  perfectly  flat  and  the  throat  is 
well  open.  When  giving  the  vowels  it  is  necessary  to  drill  each 
child  separately,  directing  its  attention  to  the  chest.  If  that  is  made 
to  vibrate  the  voice  will  be  low  and  strong.  We  cannot  have  a  high- 
pitched  voice  if  the  chest  is  made  to  vibrate  well  while  speaking. 
There  is  no  need  of  having  high-pitched  voices.  It  is  the  teacher's 
fault  if  the  voices  are  poor;  on  her  depends  the  quality  of  the  tones. 

We  should  not  force  voice  at  the  beginning.  The  muscles  of  the 
mouth  should  be  kept  free,  yet  the  child  should  use  sufficient  energy 
to  put  life  into  the  work.  We  must  work  very  slowly  with  the  voice; 
in  deaf  children— true  deaf  children— it  is  a  product  of  slow  growth 
and  demands  careful  nursing.  After  securing  a  pleasant  voice  with 
"a"  give  "a,"  because  with  it  as  with  "a"  the  tongue  is  kept  low  and 
the  throat  free.     For  "a"  the  tongue  is  lower  than  for  "a,"  and  the 


206         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

voice  must  be  deeper  and  it  should  be  stronger.  Then  we  have  "6." 
For  this  we  have  two  positions,  the  first  like  broad  "a,"  then  the 
rounding  of  the  lips.  In  giving  "oo"  we  have  the  same  position  as 
for  last  part  of  "  6."  We  take  the  same  position  for  "  6  "  as  for  broad 
"a;"  the  only  difference  is  the  position  is  not  held  as  long  as  for  "a." 

Next  we  have  the  front  vowels.  It  is  better  to  wait  until  the  con- 
sonant "s"  has  been  given  before  giving  "e,"  because  for  it  we  have 
nearly  the  same  position  as  for  "s;"  the  only  difference  is  that  the 
teeth  are  a  trifle  farther  apart  for  "e"  than  for  "s."  When  the  pupils 
can  give  a  good  "e,"  let  "i,"  "e,"and  "a"  be  given  by  gradually  open- 
ing the  mouth  farther  and  farther. 

In  giving  the  consonants  it  has  been  my  custom  to  give  "f  "  first, 
because  I  get  more  force  with  it  at  first  than  with  "p,"  which  is  com- 
monly given. 

As  soon  as  I  have  a  consonant  and  a  vowel  I  combine  them,  as  "fa," 
"fa,"  "fa,"  "fa,"  "fa."  Next  give  "p,"  and  then  make  another  combi- 
nation, and  when  they  can  say  that  easily,  we  have  the  word  "papa." 
I  then  give  them  the  word  with  its  meaning.  Now  give  "wh,"  "th," 
etc.,  giving  the  easiest  first.  One  is  apt  to  have  difficulty  with  "t," 
unless  the  pupils  have  free  use  of  their  tongues;  therefore  it  is  better 
to  leave  it  until  one  of  the  last.  After  securing  good  voiceless  con- 
sonants, give  those  with  voice,  beginning  with  "w  and  "1."  In  giv- 
ing "1"  the  tendency  is  to  close  the  mouth  passage  and  give  a  nasal 
sound.    To  overcome  this. difficulty,  give  exercises  with  the  mirror. 

Make  the  tongue  as  narrow  and  pointed  as  possible,  while  depressing 
it  at  the  back,  and  then  bring  the  point  up  to  the  upper  gum,  leaving 
a  space  over  the  side  for  the  voice  to  pass  out.  I  continue  .making 
combinations.  "  S  "  is  quite  troublesome.  (Tell  how  it  is  made.)  The 
tendency  is  to  let  the  tongue  fill  the  mouth,  closing  the  passage 
through  the  middle  of  it.  Separate  the  teeth  and  open  the  passage 
with  a  pencil  or  anything  small,  and  it  can  be  easily  given.  Let  the 
child  hold  its  hand  before  your  mouth  to  feel  your  breath  while  you 
give  it,  then  give  it  after  you.  It  is  better  to  save  "s"  with  "t"  until 
the  last. 

We  often  have  difficulty  with  "  k."  When  I  have  a  pupil  who  cannot 
give  it,  and  another  who  gives  it  very  well,  I  let  that  child  work  with 
the  one  that  fails,  and  I  am  sure  to  have  a  good  "  k  "  very  soon  from  the 
child  who  failed  with  me.  I  have  never  known  this  plan  to  fail.  I 
find  that  they  understand  each  other  much  better  than  they  do  me, 
and  that  a  pupil  will  frequently  learn  much  sooner  from  another 
pupil  than  from  me.  Each  pupil  strives  to  be  first,  and  I  try  to 
cultivate  that  spirit  among  them. 

I  think  this  the  cause  of  their  learning  so  quickly  from  each  other. 
I  try  to  excite  emulation  and  pride  in  their  work,  and  my  pupils  are 
very  proud  of  talking.  As  soon  as  I  give  an  element — "f,"  for  in- 
stance— I  expect  them  to  take  it  from  my  lips  and  write  it  on  their 
slates,  and  I  give  them  all  the  single  elements  to  write  from  my  lips 
throughout  the  first  year. 

I  give  individual  drill,  but  I  strive  as  much  as  possible  to  give  class 
drill  also,  since  by  so  doing  one  can  save  much  time.  Try  to  keep 
them  busy,  and  when  resting  from  articulation  teach  language  and 
lip  reading. 

I  begin  language  teaching  by  showing  them  an  object  or  picture. 
A  school-room  should  be  well  furnished  with  toys.  We  will  show 
them  a  ball  first,  because  that  will  interest  them.     I  ask  its  name,  and 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  207 

when  I  find  that  none  can  give  it,  I  write  the  word  "  ball "  on  the  large 
slate  and  have  them  copy  it.  I  now  show  them  a  cat,  and  write  that 
word  on  the  slate  too.  After  they  have  written  these  words  several 
times,  I  show  one  of  the  objects,  asking  for  its  name.  When  they 
can  write  the  name  as  soon  as  the  object  is  shown,  I  speak  it  very 
slowly,  repeating  it  again  and  again,  and  they  write  it  from  my  lips. 
Then  I  give  them  the  other  word, "cat."  I  give  these  words  first,  be- 
cause the  first  element  of  one  is  made  with  the  lips  closed,  and  of  the 
other  with  the  back  of  the  tongue  closed.  I  repeat  these  words  until 
I  know  by  their  faces  that  they  are  sure  of  them.  I  then  ask  them 
to  show  me  the  ball,  and  they  show  me  first  to  the  word  and  then  the 
object;  and  those  who  forget  are  sure  to  be  told  by  those  who  remem- 
ber that  they  are  not  very  smart. 

I  give  them  five  or  six  name  words,  and  let  them  remain  on  a  large 
slate,  that  they  may  be  constantly  before  them.  We  work  with  these 
words  until  they  are  tired  of  them  and  want  new  ones,  and  ask  the 
names  of  the  different  objects  in  the  school-room,  which  they  very 
soon  will  do  if  they  are  kept  interested.  As  soon  as  they  can  form 
the  letters,  I  have  them  put  all  their  little  wants  into  worSs,  or  I  do 
it  for  them,  and  they  copy  it,  leaving  it  on  a  large  slate  for  their  use 
whenever  the  same  thing  is  wanted  again. 

When  a  child  has  something  to  tell  we  stop  everything  until  he  has 
made  himself  understood,  and  it  is  written  on  a  slate  so  that  all  can 
see  it;  then  we  spell  it  with  our  fingers. 

They  soon  understand  that  their  thoughts  can  all  be  put  on  the 
slate  for  them  to  see,  and  they  are  very  much  interested  as  well  as 
pleased.  This  interrupts  the  regular  school  work,  but  it  is  time  well 
spent. 

In  teaching  the  elements  try-  to  teach  those  first  which  they  can 
give  most  easily,  and  as  soon  as  possible  give  a  word—"  a  "  has  been 
given,  "f "  has  been  given  too,  "1"  comes  soon,  and  we  have  the  word 
"  fall,"  which  is  easy  for  them  to  speak.  Now  we  have  a  word  to  study, 
and  all  are  very  much  pleased.  As  soon  as  we  have  "  w"  and  "sh" 
we  have  "  wash  "  and  "  shawl."  As  the  vocal  organs  have  the  same 
position  in  giving  "p"  and  "b,"  with  voice  added  for  "b,"  we  have 
the  word  "ball."  We  repeat  these  words  again  and  again — "wash," 
"  fall ,"  "  ball,"  "  shawl."  We  have  now  gained  another  point  and  have 
a  lesson  for  the  evening.  They  write  this  lesson  on  their  slates  and 
study  it  during  the  evening  study  hour,  speaking  every  word.  In  the 
morning  each  child  recites  orally  the  lesson  committed  to  memory. 
For  the  next  lesson  we  change  the  order  of  the  words— "fall,"  "  shawl," 
"wash,"  "  ball."  We  continue  in  this  manner  until  we  have  a  num- 
ber of  words.  As  we  have  the  words  "wash"  and  "ball,"  we  have  an 
action  to  perform. 

I  try  to  keep  them  interested  every  moment.  I  cannot  have  a  care- 
less, thoughtless  child.  We  now  have  "wash  the  ball."  I  speak  the 
words  and  they  write  them.  I  also  write  them  on  the  large  slate,  and 
give  them  the  meaning  of  the  word  "wash."  We  have  a  basm  of 
water  and  wash  the  ball,  repeating  the  action  many  times.  And  each 
time  it  is  performed  they  write  it;  but  do  not  speak  it,  because  the 
combination  "shed"  is  very  difficult  to  give;  but  they  know  the 
meaning  of  each.  We  now  have,  wash  the  wall;  and  they  have  wash 
the  ball  and  wash  the  wall  for  their  lesson  in  the  evening. 

When  they  can  write  the  name  of  several  objects,  I  give  them  action 
writing,  even  before  they  can  speak  the  words.     We  continue  with  a 


208  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

few  simple  actions  until  they  are  able  to  speak  them;  then  they  take 
them  for  their  lessons  out  of  school.  I  try  to  have  each  child  under- 
stand every  word  in  the  sentence  before  speaking  it,  and  firmly  believe 
that  their  knowing  the  meaning  of  the  words  they  are  attempting  to 
speak  aids  them  very  much  in  their  articulation. 

I  know  this  is  not  the  method  pursued  by  many  oral  teachers;  but 
it  is  the  one  I  have  pursued,  and  I  believe  with  a  success  that  fully 
warrants  its  continuance. 

Mr.  W.  K.  Argo,  of  Kentucky:  How  many  pupils  did  you  have 
in  your  class? 

Miss  Richards:  I  had  ten  pupils  last  year. 

Mr.  S.  T.  Walker:  In  the  examination  of  my  class  in  articulation 
I  have  found  two  principal  difficulties,  which,  perhaps,  Miss  Richards 
can  give  me  some  light  upon.  I  find  that  congenital  mutes,  when 
they  try  to  combine  elements  that  they  have  learned  from  their 
teachers,  into  words,  they  give  the  elements  so  distinctly  as  to  make 
the  word  unintelligible.  For  instance,  take  the  word  "  ball."  They 
have  learned  the  elements  of  that  word  separately,  and  when  they 
come  to  pronounce  the  word,  after  several  months  explanation,  they 
do  not  seem  to  be  able  to  make  a  proper  coalescence  of  the  elements. 
They  pronounce  it  "b-aw-1."  Another  difficulty  is  the  forming  of 
certain  letters  or  elements,  like  the  letter  "k,"  and  they  put  too  much 
voice  in  it.  I  think  I  understood  Miss  Richards'  explanation  of  that, 
however. 

In  regard  to  the  difficulty  in  the  coalescence  of  the  elements  that 
they  have  first  learned,  would  it  not  be  better  to  try  to  teach  the 
words  as  units,  rather  than  as  so  many  parts. 

Miss  Richards:  I  prefer  giving  the  elements  first,  but  some  prefer 
giving  the  words  as  a  whole.  If  I  desired  to  teach  the  word  "  ball," 
for  instance,  I  would  first  teach  them  to  give  it  easily,  having  the 
free  use  of  their  throat.  That  is  one  trouble  that  deaf  children  have; 
their  throat  is  kept  too  rigid.  The  muscles  of  the  throat  should  be 
as  free  as  possible.  I  should  give  them  the  sound  of  "p,"  and  then 
teach  them  to  say  "p-p-p"  a  great  many  times  before  I  gave  the 
word  "ball."  "P"  and  "b"  are  nearly  the  same.  If  they  do  not 
give  any  voice  at  first,  it  does  not  matter.  I  would  teach  it  so  easily 
that  they  will  gradually  come  into  the  habit  of  saying  "ball,"  "  ball." 

Mr.  Walker:  How  do  you  teach  a  rapid  transition  from  one  word 
to  another,  in  every  sentence? 

Miss  Richards:  I  differ  from  many  teachers  in  this  respect.  I 
have  them  speak  the  words  separately  at  first.  I  teach  them  to  use 
the  article  with  the  following  word.  But  at  first,  to  get  a  distinct 
articulation,  I  should  have  them  give  each  word  separately;  and 
after  they  have  acquired  distinct  articulation,  then  I  should  teach 
them  to  lap  the  words  as  though  they  were  written  in  one  word. 

Mr.  Walker:  At  what  stage  of  instruction  do  they  commence 
lapping? 

Miss  Richards:  I  have  been  teaching  this  class  for  a  year;  and  I 
have  just  begun  to  teach  the  lapping.  Some  of  them  could  acquire 
it  sooner  than  others.  If  they  are  free  with  their  vocal  organs,  they 
will  get  it  sooner. 

Dr.  P.  G.  Gillett:  I  regard  this  as  one  of  the  very  important 
questions  upon  which  we  wish  to  get  light  from  all  points  of  view. 
I  suppose  the  whole  subject  has  been  under  discussion  and  criticism, 
and  there  are  many  I  would  like  to  hear  from.     I  would  like  to  know 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  209 

how  nearly  they  coincide  with  the  view  expressed  in  Miss  Richards' 
presentation  of  these  points. 

Rev.  Thomas  Gallaudet:  I  would  like  to  ask  Miss  Richards  if  she 
uses  symbols  for  all  of  the  visible  speech? 

Miss  Richards:  No,  sir;  I  give  the  elements  of  the  language  first, 
and  then  the  letters. 

Rev.  Thomas  Gallaudet  :  By  what  method  do  you  give  your  pupils 
the  meaning  of  the  words  you  write  out  on  the  slate? 

Miss  Richards:  If  I  desire  to  give  them  the  word  "  wash,"  I  should 
take  a  ball  and  perform  the  action.  If  I  desire  to  tell  them  to  "open 
the  door,"  I  would  open  it  to  show  them  what  I  meant. 

I  will  ask  Sister  Mary  Ann  to  state  how  they  teach  in  their  school. 
I  believe  they  teach  articulation,  and  we  would  like  to  hear  what 
they  are  doing. 

Sister  Mary  Ann,  Principal  of  the  institution  at  Buffalo,  N.  Y.: 
I  have  not  come  here  prepared  to  say  anything,  but  as  the  question 
has  been  asked  me,  I  will  state  that  I  think  we  have  one  advantage, 
although  our  system  is  somewhat  the  same  as  Miss  Richards  has 
explained  to  us.  At  our  school  all  the  pupils  use  signs  before  we 
commence  to  teach  them  articulation.  Therefore,  all  of  our  pupils 
become  interested  in  the  little  deaf-mute  who  comes  to  school,  and 
they  take  it,  and  play  with  it,  and  talk  with  it,  and  make  signs  to  it. 
When  the  child  is  ready  to  come  to  the  class— it  may  be  the  first  day — 
as  it  comes  before  the  teacher  we  adopt  whatever  method  will  please 
the  child  most.  And  in  showing  the  child  an  object,  we  do  not  pre- 
vent the  child  making  the  sign  of  the  object.  At  the  same  time  we 
do  not  prevent  the  child  trying  to  use  the  name  of  the  object.  Of 
course  it  is  an  understood  thing  that  the  elements  are  also  taught. 
The  most  of  our  children  have  studied  the  method  of  articulation. 
I  think  it  was  about  sixteen  years  ago  that  we  took  up  the  method  of 
articulation.  At  that  time  my  attention  was  drawn  to  the  subject  by 
Professor  Bell.  We  have  also  discarded  in  some  respects  the  use  of 
symbols,  because  we  think  it  is  the  loss  of  time.  We  use  the  ele- 
ments, and  also  exercise  them  on  syllables  and  words  from  the  first 
moment  they  come  into  the  class.  If  they  can  use  the  hand,  or  if 
they  can  use  a  book,  or  even  if  they  make  an  attempt  to  use  it,  we 
allow  them  to  do  so. 

I  am  not  engaged  in  this  work,  and  I  have  not  been  for  some  years, 
myself. .  We  give  great  liberty  to  our  teachers.  At  the  same  time  they 
are  all  well  instructed  in  both  the  sign  language  and  the  articulation 
method.  Our  teachers  have  been  drilled  by  the  older  teachers,  and 
they  also  have  had  the  advantage  of  going  to  articulation  schools  and 
studying  up  the  methods  of  articulation  as  used  now  in  any  of  the 
schools,  and  I  suppose  in  every  school  throughout  the  country.  The 
sister  who  is  with  me  is  engaged  in  the  work,  and  if  she  wishes  to  say 
anything  in  addition  to  what  I  have  said  she  will  do  so. 

Miss  Richards:  We  shall  be  very  glad  to  hear  from  Sister  Dosi- 
theus. 

Sister  Mary  Dositheus:  Our  younger  pupils  are  taught  by  the 
word  method,  giving  them  words  as  a  whole  and  not  the  elements  at 
first.  The  teacher  shows  an  object  to  the  pupil  and  speaks  the  name, 
which  the  child  tries  to  repeat,  such  as  "fan,"  "top,"  "lamb,"  "ball," 
etc.  The  pupils  learn  to  speak  the  word,  then  to  spell  it,  using  the 
manual  alphabet,  and  finally  to  write  it. 
14d 


210  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

After  they  have  learned  a  great  many  words  in  this  way,  they  are 
anxious  for  a  key  to  speech,  so  that  they  may  get  new  words  them- 
selves.   The  elements  are  taught  them. 

Last  year  I  had  a  class  of  boys  congenitally  deaf,  or  practically  so, 
whose  ages  were  from  fourteen  to  sixteen  years.  Some  of  them  had 
been  taught  by  the  word  method  before  they  came  to  me,  and  could 
speak  a  great  many  words.  Some  had  never  been  taught  articulation, 
but  as  their  mental  development  was  about  the  same  as  that  of  the 
former,  they  improved  nearly  as  rapidly,  with  this  difference,  that 
they  did  not  speak  with  as  great  ease,  not  having  had  practice  enough 
in  using  the  vocal  organs.  After  learning  the  elements  they  have  no 
difficulty  in  speaking  every  word  they  meet  with,  if  it  were  not  for 
the  irregularities  in  our  English  spelling.  We  formerly  taught  the 
pupils  Bell's  Visible  Speech  symbols,  but  think  it  takes  up  too  much 
time  without  helping  them  sufficiently. 

At  present,  in  teaching  an  element  a  diagram  of  the  vocal  organs 
used  in  that  element  is  mad.e  on  the  large  slate  by  the  teacher.  The 
pupil's  attention  is  called  to  the  principal  active  organs,  viz.:  the 
under  lip,  the  point  of  the  tongue,  the  top  or  front  of  the  tongue,  and 
the  back  of  the  tongue.  If  a  pupil  takes  a  wrong  position,  his  atten- 
tion is  called  to  it  by  making  one  of  these  curves:  )  under  lip;  ^  point 
of  tongue;  ^top  of  tongue;  (  back  of  tongue,  which  enables  him  to 
see  his  mistake. 

We  now  use  the  diacritical  marks,  using  Worcester's  dictionary 
instead  of  the  visible  speech  symbols;  not  spelling  words  according  to 
sound,  but  writing  them  correctly,  drawing  a  line  through  the  silent 
letters,  and  writing  the  equivalents  of  other  letters  or  combinations 
above  the  same  with  the  corresponding  diacritical  marks.  The  drill 
in  lip  reading  is  given  with  the  single  elements,  syllables  and  words, 
so  as  to  avoid  guesswork,  with  a  sentence  thrown  in  by  way  of  encour- 
agement. I  have  entire  charge  of  my  class  in  the  school-room.  I 
teach  articulation  and  lip  reading  one  and  a  half  hours  every  day. 
In  teaching  arithmetic,  geography,  etc.,  I  use  speech  as  much  as  I 
can,  but  also  use  the  manual  alphabet  and  signs.  My  pupils  speak 
or  write  the  answers. 

The  semi-mute  class  is  in  charge  of  another  teacher  who  teaches 
orally,  sometimes  making  use  of  the  manual  alphabet  and  signs  when 
they  are  a  help. 

Miss  Richards:  I  believe  Miss  Fish  has  something  to  say  as  to  her 
method  of  teaching  the  vowel  sounds. 

Miss  Fish,  of  Maryland:  Four  years  ago  I  carried  visible  speech 
with  me  to  Maryland.  I  supposed  there  was  nothing  to  take  the 
place  of  it — that  I  could  not  possibly  teach  without  it.  When  Mr. 
Ely  put  me  down  before  my  class  he  said,  "I  do  not  want  you  to  use 
visible  speech."  I  was  completely  at  a  loss  what  to  do,  but  after  sev- 
eral plans  had  been  tried  I  took  "the  translation  of  Professor  Bell's 
Visible  Speech  Chart  as  it  vjas  used  in  Northampton,  and  found  it 
answered  my  purpose  entirely.  Each  letter  or  combination  of  letters 
represents  an  arbitrary  sound,  and  by  them  pronunciation  can  be 
corrected  just  as  readily  as  with  the  symbols. 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  211 


p 

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ow       ( oy 


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Pf=f 

I  teach  all  of  the  sounds  separately,  except  "1."  I  teach  that  in 
combination.  I  spell  all  of  my  words  correctly  when  I  am  giving  a 
child  a  sentence,  according  to  the  English  method. 

Mr.  Clark  :  Do  you  use  diagrams  or  drawings  of  the  vocal  organs 
in  teaching? 

Miss  Fish  :  I  use  mirrors. 

Mr.  Jenkins:  Have  you  not  found  value  in  the  analysis  which 
Professor  Bell  makes  of  the  vocal  organs,  and  so  forth,  in  an  increased 
delicacy  of  ear?  Are  you  not  able  to  correct  faults  by  having  studied 
the  action  of  the  vocal  organs  as  a  whole? 

Miss  Fish:  Certainly.  I  think  it  is  very  necessary  for  the  teacher 
to  understand  the  location  of  all  the  organs  of  speech,  and  I  teach  it 
to  the  child. 

Mr.  Ely:  Do  you  not  find  that  a  knowledge  of  Professor  Bell's  sys- 
tem of  visible  speech  is  of  advantage  in  your  teaching? 

Miss  Fish:  Certainly;  a  knowledge  of  his  system  is  absolutely  nec- 
essary to  a  teacher  of  articulation;  but  not  necessarily  a  knowledge  of 
the  symbols. 

Prof.  Samuel  Porter,  of  Washington:  I  would  like  to  ask 
whether,  in  teaching  the  elementary  sounds  of  consonants,  the  teach- 
ers are  particular  to  give  the  true  forms,  as  one  is  initial  and  the 
other  is  terminal.  For  instance,  the  "p"  in  "hope"  is  different  from 
the  "p"  in  "par."  In  the  word  "quick"  you  have  the  two  forms  of 
"  k,"  the  initial  and  the  terminal— two  different  actions.  I  wish  to  ask 
whether  the  teachers  are  particular  to  make  that  distinction  with 
different  actions  of  the  organs,  as  the  consonants  are  terminal  or  ini- 
tial ;  whether  teachers  of  elementary  forms  of  consonants  are  particu- 
lar to  drill  their  pupils  in  these  two  particular  forms? 

Miss  Richards:  Yes,  sir;  I  teach  them  that  that  sound  is  to  be 
made  very  gently  at  the  end  of  a  word.  And  I  have  no  trouble  with 
that. 

Miss  True,  of  Rochester,  New  York:  In  case  of  any  mistake  made 
by  a  child,  do  you  put  that  mistake  before  the  child  by  some  sign,  or 
on  the  board? 

Miss  Richards:  Yes;  I  allow  the  whole  school  to  see  the  mistakes. 
For  instance,  if  I  was  to  write  on  the  board  the  word  "pa,"  and  the 
child  gave  it  "par,"  I  should  write  "par." 

Miss  True:  I  give  the  initial  consonant  first.     I  use  Bell's  system. 


212  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

Miss  Richards:  I  believe  a  knowledge  of  Bell's  system  is  very  nec- 
essary for  a  teacher.  I  think  it  takes  one  to  the  very  root  of  all 
speech;  but  I  think  it  is  very  laborious  for  the  children. 

Mr.  Williams:  You  say  that  you  believe  a  knowledge  of  Bell's 
system  is  very  necessary  for  a  teacher.  Do  you  mean  that  that  par- 
ticular system  is  necessary,  or  that  it  is  necessary  that  the  teacher 
should  understand  the  principles  of  vocal  physiology,  which  I  under- 
stand are  just  the  same  in  Greenberger's  system  as  in  Bell's  system  of 
visible  speech?  If  a  teacher  understands  vocal  physiology,  whether 
he  gets  it  from  Bell's  or  Greenberger's  system,  does  it  make  any  dif- 
ference? 

Miss  Richards:  No,  sir;  it  does  not,  but,  perhaps,  because  I  studied 
Bell's  system,  I  feel  that  I  can  get  it  clearer  by  that  particular  system. 
I  studied  it  with  Professor  Bell,  and  realized  that  there  was  some- 
thing in  it  to  take  hold  of.  I  believe  that  our  articulation  teachers 
should  go  to  the  very  root  of  the  language,  the  mechanism  of  speech, 
and  if  Bell's  system  will  enable  them  to  do  it,  take  that;  if  it  will  not, 
take  something  else  that  will.  So  long  as  the  thing  is  reached  it  does 
not  matter  how. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  In  the  Kendall  Green  school,  at  Washington,  the 
symbols  of  visible  speech  have  been  taught  to  our  pupils  to  a  consid- 
erable extent,  but  our  teacher  is  using  them  rather  less  and  less  in 
teaching  the  pupils.  She,  herself,  is  well  grounded  in  the  system, 
understands  it  thoroughly,  and  makes  use  of  it  at  various  points  as  a 
means  of  assistance,  but  she  does  not  use  it  as  much  as  she  did  in  the 
beginning,  that  is  to  teach  symbols  to  all  pupils,  and  require  its  use 
by  them. 

Mr.  Moses:  I  have  used  that  system  more  or  less,  and  I  find  it  of 
some  assistance. 

Mr.  Williams:  Does  your  teacher  understand  thoroughly  any  sys- 
tem of  vocal  physiology  ? 

Mr.  Moses:  He  understands  diacritical  marking. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  In  some  instances  with  semi-mutes  I  have  cor- 
rected defective  pronunciation  by  simply  spelling  phonetically,  and 
it  succeeds  perfectly.  A  young  man  once  traveling  with  me  mispro- 
nounced the  Schuylkill  River,  and  I  immediately  corrected  his  pro- 
nunciation by  giving  the  spelling  of  a  word  with  which  he  was 
familiar,  and  he  pronounced  it  correctly  without  difficulty. 

Miss  Richards:  It  takes  three  months'  drill  to  perfect  a  child  in 
visible  speech,  and  while  you  are  teaching  that  you  are  not  teaching 
anything  else.  Why  not  spend  that  three  months  in  giving  the  child 
the  elements  of  the  language  ?  A  child  knows  visible  speech,  and  it 
is  taught  to  pronounce  through  visible  speech.  When  it  goes  from 
school  who  will  write  visible  speech  for  it?  Its  teacher  or  those  who 
understand  visible  speech  can  do  it,  but  how  many  people  in  a  sign 
school  or  any  other  school  understands  the  system  of  visible  speech  ? 
One  special  teacher  understands  it. 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark:  I  think  the  same  thing  applies  to  all  of  our  helps, 
diacritical  systems,  diagrams,  and  so  forth. 

Miss  Richards:  We  teach  the  diacritical  marks,  and  they  have 
them  always. 

Mr.  Noyes:  It  strikes  me  that  we  have  right  here  a  very  practical 
suggestion,  that  this  Bell  system  of  visible  speech  is  a  mere  help  to  our 
children  in  their  ordinary  efforts  to  obtain  language.  I  wish  to 
inquire  which  is  the  most  useful  dictionary  under  that  system. 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  213 

Miss  Richards:  I  think  that  Worcester's  dictionary  is  used  most 
in  the  East,  and  Webster's  in  the  West. 

Here  the  normal  section  adjourned  until  to-morrow  morning,  at 
nine  o'clock. 

TUESDAY,  JULY  20,  1886. 

President  Gillett  in  the  chair  called  the  convention  to  order. 

Mr.  G.  0.  Fay,  of  Connecticut,  offered  a  prayer. 

The  Secretary  read  the  minutes  of  the  last  session,  which  were 
approved. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  paper  to  be  read  is'entitled  "Technical 
Education,"  by  Mr.  F.  D.  Clark,  of  Arkansas. 

Mr.  Clark: 

technical  education. 

The  high  honor  of  establishing  the  first  schools  in  this  country 
where  any  persistent  attempt  was  made  to  teach  trades,  belongs  to  the 
institutions  for  the  deaf.  But,  though  we  began  first,  I  hardly  think 
we  are  keeping  abreast  of  those  who  started  later  in  the  race. 

For  a  long,  long  time  there  was  little  said,  or,  apparently,  thought 
of  the  importance  of  teaching  the  use  of  tools,  the  peculiarities  of  ma- 
terials, or  the  methods  of  working.  Professor  Wilkinson,  by  his  article 
on  the  Russian  system,  a  year  ago,  drew  much  attention  to  this  sub- 
ject, but,  so  far  as  I  have  learned,  the  California  institution  is  the  only 
one  that  has  made  any  real  attempt  to  follow  this  system,  and  there 
it  is  used,  if  I  understand  correctly,  only  in  the  carpenter  shop.  At 
most  of  the  institutions  the  trades,  with,  perhaps,  the  single  exception 
of  printing,  are  not  taught,  but  the  pupils  are  allowed  to  learn  what 
they  can  of  them  by  spending  some  hours  a  day  at  work  in  the  shops. 
In  none,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  is  there  any  regular  course  of  instruc- 
tion, any  examination,  or  any  attempt  at  either. 

One  of  the  curiosities  of  our  modern  life  is  the  care  and  precision 
with  which  accomplishments  requiring  the  use  of  our  physical  powers 
are  taught,  and  the  extreme  indifference  which  we  show  to  the  learn- 
ing of  useful  employments.  If  a  boy  wishes  to  learn  to  dance  it  is 
easy  for  him  to  find  skilled  teachers  to  analyze  the  step,  train  him  in 
each  portion  of  it,  and  soon  make  him  an  expert.  Should  he  take  to 
rowing,  he  has  the  same  advantages  offered  to  him;  his  teacher  will 
carefully  explain  to  him  each  of  the  few  movements  that  constitute 
that  art;  he  can  even  find  books  in  which  separate  chapters,  carefully 
illustrated,  are  devoted  to  "the  catch,"  "the  stroke,"  "the  feather," 
"the  recover,"  "the  use  of  the  legs,"  etc.;  and  teachers  who  will  watch 
him  carefully  and  check  him  at  the  beginning  of  every  fault.  So  with 
every  other  amusement  where  skill  is  required.  Boxing,  fencing, 
riding,  etc.,  all  have  their  special  teachers;  and  all  need  them,  too, 
for  even  in  such" a  simple  exercise  as  running  it  is  rare  to  find  a  boy 
who  can  use  all  the  physical  powers  required  to  their  best  advantage 
'till  he  has  been  taught  to  do  so.  Why  cannot  we  have  masters  who 
will  teach  the  use  of  tools  as  carefully  and  thoroughly  as  these  teach 
the  use  of  playthings?  Perhaps  the  reason  why  it  takes  a  boy  so 
much  longer  to  learn  to  saw  accurately  than  to  row  swiftly  is  that  he 
is  taught  to  row,  and  left  to  find  out  for  himself  the  knack  of  sawing. 

Suppose  we  simplv  told  a  pupil  in  school  to  add,  and  never  taught 
him  to  carry.    He  might,  after  long  effort,  find  it  out  for  himself,  but 


214  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

his  progress  in  arithmetic  would  probably  be  very  slow;  yet  that  is 
the  way  trades  are  taught.  The  help  that  the  master  gives  is  often 
worse  than  none.  He  "lays  off"  the  work  and  leaves  the  pupil  to  do 
it.  Better  let  the  pupil  "  lay  off,"  and  teach  him  how  to  work.  There 
is  much  more  in  sawing  than  in  working  a  saw  up  and  down,  and 
yet  the  instruction  given  is  to  give  the  boy  a  saw — too  often  a  dull 
one — and  tell  him  to  saw.  If  he  makes  mistakes  they  may  be  pointed, 
out,  but  the  reason  why  he  made  them  is  very  seldom  explained  to 
him.  So  it  is  with  every  other  tool.  If  there  is  any  possibility  of  a 
bo}'  picking  up  the  knowledge  necessary  to  use  it  on  the  job  in  hand, 
he  is  left  to  do  so;  if  not,  so  much  of  its  use  as  there  is  present  press- 
ing need  for  is  explained,  and  no  more. 

Are  the  masters  of  the  shops  responsible  for  this  state  of  things?  I 
do  not  think  so.  They  have  been  brought  up  to  think  that  it  takes 
seven  years  to  learn  a  trade.  Their  efficiency  is  judged,  not  by  the 
shortness  of  the  time  in  which  they  can  teach  a  boy  their  trade,  or 
the  number  they  teach,  but  by  the  amount  of  finished  work  they  turn 
out — by  the  dollars  and  cents  the  shop  makes  or  saves. 

This  is  the  fundamental  error  that  lies  at  the  root  of  all  our  me- 
chanical teaching,  and  causes  much  of  our  trouble.  We  expect  prof- 
itable work  from  learners.  For  institutions  where  the  time  allowed 
each  pupil  is  long,  the  present  system  is  not  even  the  most  profitable. 
It  would  pay  them  better  to  teach  the  trade  first,  at  a  dead  loss,  and 
have  good  workmen  later.  For  the  few  dollars  that  are  saved  by  the 
present  plan,  we  throw  away  our  chances  of  making  quick  and  accu- 
rate workmen,  and  probably  lose  more  than  we  gain. 

There  should  be  a  course  through  the  shops  of  an  institution,  just 
as  there  is  through  its  classes,  and  to  do  the  best  work  this  course 
should  be  as  much  under  the  control  and  supervision  of  the  head  of 
the  school  as  the  other.  Each'  teacher  of  a  trade  should  receive  as 
much  advice  and  direction  from  him  as  a  teacher  of  a  class  does. 

My  idea  would  be  to  form  all  the  younger  pupils  into  classes  which 
should  be  instructed  in  the  use  of  all  the  tools,  and  the  peculiarities 
of  all  the  materials  used  in  every  trade  taught.  I  do  not  mean  that 
I  would  keep  them  at  it  long  enough  to  learn  to  work  rapidly  and 
accurately;  but  only  long  enough  to  learn  how  to  work  and  what 
good  work  is.  For  instance,  it  would  take  but  a  short  time  to  teach  a 
boy  how  to  sew  leather,  but  long  practice  to  make  him  a  quick  and 
neat  workman.  To  saw  out  a  circle  with  a  compass  saw,  accurately 
following  the  line,  and  squarely  through  the  material,  is  an  operation 
requiring  considerable  skill  and  practice;  but  the  principles  that 
underlie  the  work  are  very  simple,  and  after  sawing  one  or  two  such 
circles,  a  boy  whose  attention  was  called  to  those  principles  would 
remember  them,  and  only  need  practice  to  gain  speed  and  accuracy. 
To  file  a  broad  piece  of  metal  perfectly  flat,  and  do  it  rapidly  and 
without  continual  testing,  is  one  of  the  hardest  tasks  a  metal  fitter 
has;  yet  the  principle  of  the  thing  is  very  simple,  and  to  file  one  such 
piece  slowly  and  carefully  would  teach  it  thoroughly. 

It  should  be  the  object  of  this  preliminary  course  through  all  the 
shops  to  teach  these  principles  that  underlie  the  use  of  tools,  the 
peculiarities  of  the  materials  used,  and  the  methods  of  work.  When 
this  has  been  done  for  all  the  trades  taught  in  an  institution,  a  boy 
could  select  the  trade  that  he  wished  to  follow  with  some  knowledge  of 
what  he  would  have  to  do  in  it.  Then  he  could  make  a  more  careful 
study  of  it,  and  gain  the  rapidity  and  accuracy  that  mark  the  perfect 


OF   AMERICAN  INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  215 

workman  by  practice  on  its  details.  Even  in  this  special  training, 
the  principle,  that  the  pupil  should  spend  most  of  his  time  on  those 
parts  of  the  work  that  he  knows  least  about  or  is  least  skillful  in, 
which  should  always  be  followed,  would  be  very  inimical  to  pecuniary 
gain.  Two  years  of  the  preliminary  training  in  all  the  shops,  and 
two  more  of  this  special  practice,  ought  to  make  a  boy  a  good  work- 
man. It  is  nearly  double  the  time  allowed  for  speaking  youth.  There 
would  then  remain  several  years  in  which  the  pupil  could  do  good 
work  in  return  for  his  instruction,  and  probably  he  would  do  more 
in  that  time  than  he  does  now  in  seven  years  under  the  present 
method.  This  would  still  be  a  special  training  for  the  trade  he 
intended  to  follow. 

In  this  special  training,  after  the  first  two  years  of  general  training, 
I  should  make  a  great  departure  from  the  methods  now  in  use.  Chil- 
dren are  human,  and  the  same  feeling  that  makes  a  man  working  by 
the  piece  a  much  more  rapid  workman  than  he  who  works  by  the 
day  would  have  the  same  effect  upon  the  boy,  and  rapid  workmen 
are  what  we  want.  Let  the  work  be  piece-work.  If  possible,  let  it  be 
paid  for,  not  what  it  would  be  worth  in  the  market,  but  enough  to 
encourage  the  boy  to  try  and  excel  in  it.  If  the  institution  cannot 
afford  this,  let  a  reward  of  some  sort  be  held  out  for  rapid  work.  The 
greatest  trouble  with  almost  all  deaf-mute  workmen  is  that  they  are 
slow.  Is  not  this  directly  owing  to  the  present  system  of  spending  a 
certain  number  of  hours  in  the  shop  without  regard  to  the  amount 
of  work  done?  The  boy  who  apparently  is  always  at  work,  though  he 
may  potter  and  dawdle,  and  not  accomplish  in  a  month  as  much  as 
another  does  in  a  week,  yet  if  he  does  not  bother  the  head  of  the. 
shop,  generally  stands  as  high  in  his  estimation. 

It  might  be  a  good  plan  to  keep  an  account  with  these  boys  and 
charge  them  for  the  time  spent  in  instructing  them,  and  for  spoiled 
material,  deducting  it  from  what  they  earn.  They  will,  probably,  be 
treated  so  when  at  work,  and  it  would  have  a  decided  effect  in  making 
them  careful,  and  teaching  them  to  judge  material. 

To  teach  trades  in  this  way  is  much  more  difficult  than  to  allow 
them  to  be  learned  in  the  old  way.  It  also  costs  more;  but  to  make 
workmen,  and  not  things,  should  be  the  object  of  every  technical 
school  shop.  The  old  plans  turn  out  a  certain  amount  of  finished 
work,  too  often  of  an  inferior  kind,  and  a  number  of  workmen  hardly 
up  to  the  standard.  It  is  hoped  that  the  new  will  make  workmen 
above  the  average,  both  in  skill  and  speed. 

The  teaching  in  school  should  be  fitted,  to  some  extent,  to  that  in 
the  shop.  In  the  first  place,  I  regard  instruction  in  scale  drawing  as 
an  absolute  essential  for  success  in  this  kind  of  teaching.  Not  only 
will  it  be  useful  in  nearly  every  trade,  but  in  many  it  is  absolutely 
necessary.  Then  each  trade  has  to  a  certain  extent  a  language  of  its 
own,  anjd  this  language  should  be  taught.  It  would  take  but  a  short 
time,  and  would  helo  the  shop  work  greatly.      g  _ _ 

In  connection  with  the  shop,  if  the  institution  could  afford  it,  I 
should  have  a  sort  of  mechanical  playhouse,  where  there  should  be  a 
lathe,  a  few  jig  saws,  a  set  of  good  tools,  and  a  place  for  each  boy  to 
keep  his  private  property.  Here  I  would  give  each  perfect  freedom 
to  follow  his  own  will,  except  that  the  tools  should  be  kept  in  order, 
and  damages  to  the  institution  property  paid  for  Knowing  how 
eagerly  many  speaking  boys  take  to  such  pursuits,  I  have  no  doubt 


216  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

that  the  deaf  would  also,  and  I  would  expect  much,  really  good  work 
from  this  playhouse. 

The  pupils'  library  should  have  some  works  that  would  bear  directly 
upon  the  work  of  the  shops,  and  on  mechanical  work  in  general. 

It  has  always  seemed  strange  to  me  that  none  of  our  institutions 
give  any  instruction  in  metal  working.  There  is  no  reason  why 
deaf-mutes  should  not  excel  at  this,  and  it  would  open  a  vast  field  of 
labor  to  them.  I  have  often  thought  that  the  larger  institutions 
could  teach  it  with  great  success.  Most  of  them  have  a  great  deal  of 
gas  and  steamfitting  and  plumbing  to  do,  and  even  if  they  did  not, 
these  trades  are  as  easily  learned  as  carpentry  and  printing.  To  any 
wishing  to  establish  such  a  shop,  I  suggest  that  in  the  manufacture  of 
the  ordinary  globe  valve,  they  have  a  Held  where  almost  all  the  oper- 
ations in  brass  could  be  taught  on  small  light  work,  and  the  product 
find  ready  sale.  The  outfit  would  not  be  very  expensive.  The 
material  spoiled  could  be  remelted,  and  the  necessity  for  accuracy  is 
such  that  it  would  be  a  most  salutary  check  on  bad  workmanship. 
Should  the  institution  that  I  have  the  honor  to  represent  ever  be 
financially  able  to  carry  out  such  an  undertaking,  I  intend  to  urge 
the  establishment  of  such  a  shop  upon  its  Board  most  strenuously. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  It  is  usual  for  the  standing  Executive  Committee 
to  present  a  report  to  the  convention  of  its  proceedings  from  the  time 
of  the  convention  preceding.  The  Chairman  of  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee presents  the  following  report,  which,  with  your  consent,  I  will 
now  read  to  the  convention. 

The  standing  Executive  Committee  beg  leave  to  submit  the  fol- 
lowing report  of  their  action  since  the  adjournment  of  the  tenth 
convention,  held  at  Jacksonville,  in  August,  1882: 

Four  meetings  of  the  committee  have  been  held  since  the  summer 
of  1882 — the  first  at  the  Institution  for  the  Improved  Instruction  of 
Deaf-Mutes,  New  York  City,  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  June,  1884,  at 
which  all  the  members  were  present  except  Dr.  Maclntire;  the  second 
at  the  Minnesota  School  for  the  Deaf,  Faribault,  July  11,  1884,  at 
which  all  the  members  were  present  except  Miss  Rogers;  the  third  at 
the  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  New  York  City,  December 
10,  1885,  at  which  Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet,  Dr.  Peet,  and  Dr.  Gillett  were 
present;  and  the  fourth  at  Berkeley,  California,  on  July  16,  1886,  at 
which  all  the  members  were  present  except  Miss  Rogers. 

At  each  meeting  of  the  committee  the  editor  of  the  "Annals"  has 
presented  a  report,  and  his  accounts  have  been  audited  by  the  com- 
mittee and  found  correct. 

At  the  third  meeting  the  death  of  Rev.  Thomas  Maclntire,  Ph.D., 
who  had  been  a  member  of  the  committee  since  1868,  was  announced. 
The  committee  adopted  a  minute  expressive  of  their  high  apprecia- 
tion of  the  character  and  work  of  Dr.  Maclntire,  and  filled  the  vacancy 
occasioned  by  his  death  by  the  election  of  Mr.  J.  L.  Noyes,  of  Minne- 
sota. 

At  the  fourth  meeting  the  editor  of  the  "Annals"  presented  a  report, 
of  his  work  since  the  meeting  of  the  last  convention,  as  follows: 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  217 

Berkeley,  California,  July  15, 1886. 

Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet,  Chairman  Executive  Committee  of  the  Convention  of  American  Instruct- 
ors of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb: 

I  respectfully  submit  a  summary  of  my  receipts  and  disbursements  since  the  last  Con- 
vention of  American  Instructors. 

Receipts. 

From  balance  on  hand  August  20, 1882 |(5o2  79 

From  assessments  on  institutions '".'.....'.  0,253  33 

From  individual  subscriptions '.'.'.'.'."'.'."  '762  09 

From  sale  of  back  volumes  and  numbers """  i-u  }- 

From  advertisements ""  r,\    j; 

Total $7,910  16 

Disbursements. 

For  printing  and  engraving $3,505  08 

For  salary  of  editor 1,600  00 

For  articles  of  contributors *797  56 

For  preparation  of  index 1 '_'_  250  00 

For  postage,  expressage,  stationery,  etc 313  59 

For  shelves _ 10  00 

For  advertisement 8  00 

For  traveling  expenses 293  80 

Balance  on  hand 1,132  13 

Total $7,910  16 

The  annual  assessment,  at  the  rate  of  forty  cents  a  pupil,  based  on  the  number  of  pupils 
actually  present  in  the  institutions  on  the  first  of  December,  1876,  has  been  paid  in  full  l>v 
the  following  institutions:  American,  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  Kentucky,  Ohio  (until 
December,  1885),  Virginia,  Indiana,  Illinois  (since  January,  1884),  Georgia,  South  Caro- 
lina, Iowa,  Mississippi  (until  December,  1886),  Texas,  Columbia,  California,  Kansas, 
Le  Couteulx  St.  Mary's,  New  York  Improved  (until  March,  1886),  Clarke,  Arkansas 
(since  January,  1886),  Nebraska,  West  Virginia,  Maryland  Colored,  St.  Joseph's,  Colorado, 
Western  Pennsylvania,  Western  New  York,  Central  New  York,  Halifax,  and  Ontario 
institutions. 

The  following  institutions  have  paid  less  than  their  assessments,  receiving  a  propor- 
tionally less  number  of  copies  of  the  "Annals:" 


Institution. 


Amount  of 
Annual  Assessment. 


Amount  Paid. 


Tennessee 

North  Carolina 

Maryland 

Minnesota 


$42  00 
54  80 
36  00 
33  60 


$30  00 
20  00 
25  00 

*20  00 


*Since  January,  1886. 

The  Louisiana,  Missouri,  Wisconsin,  Michigan,  Alabama,  Oregon,  New  England  Indus- 
trial, Dakota,  New  Jersey,  Northern  New  York,  and  Florida  institutions,  and  the  private, 
denominational,  and  day  schools,  have  not  contributed  to  the  support  of  the  "Annals," 
except  in  some  cases  by  subscribing  for  several  copies. 

The  income  of  the  "Annals"  during  the  past  four  years  has  been  slightly  greater  than 
the  expenditure,  giving  us  a  balance  on  hand  $479  greater  than  four  years  ago. 

The  index  to  the  "Annals"— volumes  twenty-one  to  thirty,  inclusive— was  published 
soon  after  the  completion  of  the  thirtieth  volume,  and  distributed  free  of  charge  to  the 
institutions  contributing  to  the  support  of  the  "  Annals  "  and  to  the  subscribers. 

I  respectfully  suggest  that  the  convention  be  recommended  to  change  the  name  of  their 
periodical  from  "American  Annals  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb"  to  "American  Annals  of  the 
Education  of  the  Deaf."  This  would  indicate  its  real  character  better  than  the  present 
title,  and  would  dispense  with  the  unnecessary  word  "dumb,"  which  is  objectionable  to 
many  of  the  parents  and  friends  of  the  deaf. 

Respectfully  submitted. 

F  '  E.  A.  FAY. 

At  the  fourth  meeting  of  the  committee  a  communication  was  pre- 
sented by  Miss  Rogers,  who  was  unable  to  be  present,  from  the 
corporation  of  the  Clarke  institution,  urging  that  the  words  "and 
dumb"  be  dropped  from  the  name  of  the  "Annals,"  and  from  the 
title  of  the  convention. 


218         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

The  committee  acted  favorably  on  the  suggestions  of  the  editor  and 
of  Miss  Rogers,  and  now  recommend  that  hereafter  the  "Annals"  be 
called  "The  American  Annals  of  the  Deaf,"  and  that  the  convention 
assume  the  title  of  "The  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the 
Deaf." 

The  Conference  of  Principles  held  at  Faribault  in  1884  appointed 
a  committee  to  prepare  a  blank  form  for  the  collection  of  statistics 
concerning  the  deaf  and  dumb.  The  committee  so  appointed  met  at 
Washington  in  November,  1884,  prepared  suitable  forms  for  the  col- 
lection and  preservation  of  statistics,  publishing  said  forms  in  the 
"  Annals"  for  January,  1885.  The  Committee  on  Statistics  requested 
the  standing  Executive  Committee  to  have  blank  forms  printed, 
which  might  be  furnished  to  the  several  institutions  at  very  small 
cost,  and  so  facilitate  the  collection  and  preservation  of  statistics  in  a 
uniform  manner.  Your  committee  have  authorized  the  editor  of  the 
"Annals"  to  carry  out  the  suggestion  of  the  Committee  on  Statistics, 
provided  any  considerable  number  of  institutions  will  indicate  a 
purpose  to  use  the  blanks. 

This  subject  is  commended  to  the  serious  consideration  of  the  con- 
vention as  one  of  very  great  importance,  and  the  committee  express 
the  hope  that  the  heads  of  the  several  institutions  will  at  an  early 
day  accept  and  act  on  the  recommendations  of  the  Committee  on 
Statistics. 

All  of  which  is  respectfully  submitted.     By  order  of  the  committee. 

E.  M.  GALLAUDET,  Chairman. 
Berkeley,  Cal.,  July  20,  1886. 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  In  submitting  this  report,  I  will  add  a  single 
word  as  to  the  recommendation  of  the  committee  that  the  name  of 
"The  Annals  of  the  Convention"  be  changed.  It  is  believed  that 
this  proposed  change  will  commend  itself  to  every  member  of  the 
convention.  We  are  very  well  aware  that  the  pupils  for  whose  inter- 
ests we  are  laboring  are  dumb,  in  general,  because  they  are  deaf;  that 
is,  dumb  when  they  come  to  us;  or  many  of  them  were.  Very  many 
very  soon  cease  to  be  dumb  under  the  helpful  influence  of  their 
instructors  in  speech.  It  has  been  found  in  the  experience  of  many 
of  the  officers  of  the  institutions  that  many  persons  are  made  to  feel 
uncomfortable  by  the  use  of  the  word  "dumb,"  applied  to  deaf  chil- 
dren; and  that  even  in  some  cases  the  carrying  out  of  laws  with 
relation  to  the  education  of  the  so  called  deaf  and  dumb  has  been 
involved  in  difficulty.  Children  who  are  deaf  but  not  dumb,  but 
who  are  fit  subjects  for  education  in  the  schools  for  the  deaf,  have 
sometimes  found  great  difficulty  in  securing  the  help  which  is 
afforded  to  those  who  are  said  to  be  deaf  and  dumb.  These  sugges- 
tions are  found  to  be  in  the  line  of  a  general  reformation  of  names 
and  terms  as  applied  to  the  people  for  whom  we  are  working,  and 
even  to  the  schools  established  for  their  benefit. 

The  old  question  was  once  raised,  "  What's  in  a  name?  That  which 
we  call  a  rose  would  smell  as  sweet  by  any  other  name."  I  believe 
there  is  a  good  deal  in  a  name,  and  that  often  much  can  be  done  in 
the  way  of  helping  a  cause  by  giving  it  a  correct  name.  So  I  trust 
that  this  suggestion  of  the  committee  may  meet  the  approval  of  the 
convention,  as  well  as  the  other  suggestion  in  regard  to  the  acceptance 
of  the  recommendation  of  the  Committee  on  Statistical  Forms. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE    DI.AI  .  219 

Mr.  G.  0.  Fay:  I  would  move  that  the  report  of  the  Standing 
Executive  Committee,  including  the  other  recommendation  respect- 
ing the  change  of  the  title  of  the  "Annals"  of  our  convention,  be 
accepted  and  adopted;  and  that  the  members  of  said  committee  be 
reappointed  for  four  years,  or  until  the  session  of  the  next  convention. 

Dr.  Gillett  then  put  the  motion  to  the  convention,  which  was  car- 
ried unanimously. 

Mr.  J.  J.  Checkering,  of  Washington,  then  read  the  following 
paper,  entitled 

PHYSICAL   CULTURE. 

I.  do  not  expect  in  this  paper  to  offer  anything  new  or  original.  I 
merely  wish  to  make  a  plea  for  what  I  consider  an  especially  impor- 
tant part  of  a  liberal  education,  and  one  which  in  this  country  has 
been  largely  overlooked  and  slighted.  To  this  I  will  merely  add  a 
brief  description  of  the  system  of  physical  exercise  at  present  in 
vogue  at  the  National  Deaf-Mute  College  in  Washington.  These  re- 
marks apply  to  all  educational  institutions,  and  will  have  especial 
reference  to  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  only  a  few  particulars. 

Cicero  defines  a  liberal  education  as  the  education  of  a  "  liber,"  or 
freeman,  as  distinguished  from  a  slave.  An  important  part  of  that 
freeman's  education,  in  the  opinion  of  those  old  Romans,  was  a  phys- 
ical development  which  would  enable  him  to  form  a  part,  undergo 
the  hardships,  and  share  in  the  victories  of  those  legions  which  for  a 
season  overwhelmed  the  world.  In  these  happier  days  we  are  not 
called  on  so  often  to  share  in  the  struggles  of  the  empire;  but  is  the 
struggle  for  individual  existence  any  less  keen  than  in  the  times  of 
the  Caesars  ?  Do  we  not  constantly  hear  of  the  necessity  of  straining 
every  nerve  in  order  to  keep  pace  with  the  times?  Do  we  not  see, 
Americans  especially,  nervous,  eager,  anxious;  a  constant  drain,  phys- 
ical and  mental,  going  on  all  the  while  ?  "A  sound  mind  in  a  sound 
body"  is  not  a  catch  phrase  in  this  nineteenth  century;  it  is  a  neces- 
sity. And  look  at  our  schools  and  see  what  a  race  is  coming  up  to 
receive  the  burdens  of  the  present  generation!  Look  at  the  stooping 
shoulders,  narrow  chests,  thin  arms,  and  spindle  shanks  of  the  rising 
Americans.  Remember  the  distinguished  families  which  you  can 
recall  at  this  moment,  when  extraordinary  mental  vigor,  transmitted 
and  refined  from  generation  to  generation,  with  no  corresponding 
increase  in  physical  development,  has  resulted  in  brilliant  wrecks — 
poor  castaways  ere  the  first  third  of  their  life's  voyage  was  completed, 
and  the  richness  of  their  freight  only  making  more  evident  the  folly 
of  intrusting  it  to  so  frail  a  craft.  Build  strong  this  ship  and  then 
freight  it  with  what  you  will. 

Were  the  question  put  to  me:  "  Why  do  you  consider  physical  exer- 
cise in  a  gymnasium  of  general  importance?"  I  should  reply:  "Be- 
cause it  leads  to  the  development  of  a  symmetrical  body."  A  perfect 
man  (or  woman)  is  the  noblest  work  of  God.  I  do  not  consider  him 
a  perfect  man  whose  right  arm  is  an  inch  bigger  than  his  left,  whose 
right  shoulder  stands  higher  than  its  fellow,  who  with  a  splendid 
pair  of  legs  and  hips  has  a  narrow  chest  and  stooping  shoulders,  who 
with  irreproachable  chest  and  lungs  must  nurse  his  dyspepsia  with 
stale  bread  and  drugs,  who  with  biceps  the  size  of  oranges  hasn't 
strength  enough  in  his  triceps  to  raise  his  own  weight.  The  Greeks 
worshiped  beauty;  and  symmetry  was  with  them  one  of  its  cardinal 
principles.    Surely  in  the  development  of  the  human  form  divine 


220  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

they  surpassed  the  world,  and  we  might  safely  emulate  the  creators 
of  an  Apollo  and  a  Venus,  if  only  from  an  artistic  standpoint.  But 
beyond  this,  a  symmetrical  body  is  the  strongest  body;  it  can  do  the 
most  work.  If  one  set  of  driving  wheels  on  an  engine  is  of  poorer 
material  than  the  other,  it  will  give  out  sooner,  and  then,  unfortu- 
nately, both  are  useless.  One-sided  work  is  never  the  best  work ;  a  man 
naturally  uses  the  stronger  of  a  pair  of  members;  it  is  easier  for  him, 
and  he  is  conscious  of  doing  better  work  for  the  time  being.  But  as 
a  result  of  this,  the  stronger  goes  on  getting  stronger,  and  the  weaker 
(through  lack  of  use)  goes  on  getting  weaker.  Finally,  the  weaker 
collapses,  and  then  comes  the  crash  of  both.  In  symmetrical  devel- 
opment we  want  to  check  all  this. 

A  great  change  has  come  over  the  methods  of  gymnastic  instruc- 
tion of  late.  Such  men  as  MacLane,  of  England,  and  Blaikie  and 
Sargent,  of  America,  have,  by  means  of  their  thorough  preparation 
for  their  work,  and  ingenious  pulley-weight  combinations,  created  a 
science  where  before  was  merely  a  series  of  desultory  and  often  mis- 
directed endeavors.  By  means  of  their  apparatus,  almost  any  set  of 
muscles  may  be  used  and  developed,  while  leaving  the  others  almost 
untouched,  and  thus  weak  parts  may  be  built  up  to  that  point  where 
they  can  join  the  rest  in  developing  the  perfect  man.  Then,  too,  the 
using  of  accumulative  sets  of  weights  enables  this  development  to  go 
on  gradually  and  surely,  with  no  overtaxing  or  straining  as  was  for- 
merly the  case  where  the  whole  weight  of  the  body  (one  to  two  hun- 
dred pounds)  had  to  be  lifted  at  the  very  first  exercise. 

Were  I  asked  why  I  considered  physical  exercise  in  a  gymnasium 
of  especial  importance  in  connection  with  schools  and  institutions  of 
learning,  I  should  say,  first,  because  it  gives  brain  rest,  immediate  and 
sure;  second,  because  it  supplies  an  outlet  for  superfluous  animal 
spirits. 

All  work  of  the  body,  whether  physical  or  mental,  results  in  the 
breaking  down  of  countless  numbers  of  cells  in  the  parts  used.  To 
supply  this  waste  an  increase  of  blood  is  demanded  in  those  parts. 
As  the  quantity  of  blood  in  the  body  is  practically  constant,  when  it 
is  directed  in  larger  quantities  to  any  particular  part  of  the  body,  the 
remaining  parts  receive  less,  and  suffer,  for  the  time  being,  a  loss  of 
vitality.  Thus  in  the  case  of  hard  study  the  brain  demands  an  excess 
of  blood,  the  small  blood  vessels  become  congested,  and  if  the  effort 
be  long  continued,  heaviness  and  headache  result,  while  the  extremi- 
ties become  cold  and  numb.  Now  let  the  student  take  up  some  brisk 
physical  exercise;  the  blood  is  at  once  called  to  this  new  scene  of 
activity,  these  parts  are  flushed,  the  brain  is  relieved,  and  for  the  time 
being  left  almost  free  to  recuperate  and  rest.  Next  to  sleep,  physical 
exercise  is  the  best  brain  rest  known!  And  right  here  let  me  remark 
that  I  have  observed  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  boys  to  "cut"  gymna- 
sium on  examination  days,  on  the  ground  that  they  had  too  much  to 
do.  I  have  even  known  schools  where  the  gymnasium  exercises  were 
omitted  on  examination  days,  for  the  same  (so  called)  reason.  Those 
are  the  very  days  of  all  others  when,  as  the  brain  has  been  unusually 
flushed  with  blood,  especial  care  should  be  taken  to  relieve  the  strain 
by  drawing  the  blood  elsewhere.  If  you  usually  exercise  half  an 
hour,  on  examination  days  exercise  an  hour. 

I  suppose  it  is  a  well  recognized  fact  that  there  is  in  all  of  us  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  superfluous  animal  spirits — devilment  I  have  heard 
it  called — which  must  be  worked  off  somehow,  somewhere.    I  claim 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  221 

that  this  gymnasium  is  a  safety-valve  for  just  this  peculiarity  of  this 
human  steam  engine.  After  an  hour's  work  in  the  gymnasium  no 
boy  or  man,  be  he  five  or  twenty-five,  cares  for  further  physical  dis- 
turbance; he  wants  to  be  quiet,  and  welcomes  study  or  rest,  as  a 
change.  I  think  the  faculty  of  the  National  Deaf-Mute  College  will 
bear  me  out  in  saying  that  cases  of  discipline  arising,  as  we  might 
say,  from  physical  disturbances,  in  and  about  Kendall  Green,  have 
diminished  marvelously,  if  they  have  not  indeed  entirely  ceased,  im- 
mediately upon  and  since  the  completion  of  the  gymnasium  ana  the 
commencement  of  exercises  therein.  That  an  improved  physique 
usually  results  in  an  improved  moral  nature,  I  consider  a  fact  too 
well  established  to  call  for  discussion. 

Our  exercises  at  Washington  consist  first  in  running  a  certain  num- 
ber of  times  around  the  gymnasium  floor;  the  run  at  the  beginning 
of  the  year  is  made  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  and  later  increased  to  half  a 
mile.  This  is  to  set  the  lungs  at  work.  Care  should  be  taken  to  have 
breathing  done  through  the  nose,  to  have  the  chest  thrown  out,  and 
to  have  the  steps  taken  on  the  toes. 

Then  follows  a  dumb-bell  exercise  with  light  wooden  bells;  here 
the  circulation  is  started,  and  all  the  muscles  set  in  working  order. 
Then  comes  a  set  of  exercises  on  Dr.  Sargent's  chest  weights,  develop- 
ing all  the  muscles  above  the  hips,  in  both  trunk  and  arms.  These 
chest-weight  exercises  are  started  with  five-pound  weights,  and 
increased  one  and  a  quarter  pounds  a  month,  till  most  students,  by 
the  close  of  winter,  take  ten  pounds  in  each  box,  or  even  more  in  the 
case  of  the  stronger  men.  The  new  student  is  prone  to  despise  the 
puny  five-pound  weight,  and  desires  to  cram  his  box  with  fifteen  or 
twenty  pounds  of  cold  iron.  Let  him;  he  never  does  it  but  once  or 
twice.  Experience  is  a  thorough  teacher,  and  three  hundred  move- 
ments make  even  the  grasshopper  (of  five  pounds  weight)  to  become 
a  burden. 

These  are  all  the  class  exercises  required.  The  exercises  are  held 
one  hour  a  day,  four  days  in  the  week,  six  months  in  the  year— from 
November  to  April,  inclusive.  Farther  north  a  month  could  well  be 
added  at  each  end.  It  is  gratifying  to  notice  that  many  students  feel 
the  need  of  all  the  exercise  they  can  get,  and  appear  regularly  on  the 
other  two  days  of  the  week.  Also  during  the  fall  and  late  spring 
months  they  may  be  found  daily  at  the  exercises,  which  are  no  longer 
required.  There  is  an  optional  class  in  club-swinging  which  practices 
on  alternate  gymnasium  days.  A  gymnasium  captain  is  elected  yearly 
from  among  the  seniors,  who  leads  the  class  exercises,  and  I  am  pleased 
to  meet  again,  at  this  convention,  two  who  have  ably  filled  that  position 
during  their  last  year  in  college,  and  whom  I  am  proud  to  point  to  as 
exponents  of  what  can  be  done  in  the  way  of  physical  culture  at  the 
National  Deaf-Mute  College.  I  refer  to  Mr.  Smith,  of  Faribault,  and 
Mr.  Hasinstat,  of  Jacksonville. 

But,  in  addition,  some  forty  measurements  are  taken  ot  each  man 
on  his  entering  the  gymnasium.  These  measurements  are  compared 
with  each  other  and  with  the  table  for  the  standard  man,  as  given  by 
Sargent  and  others.  Each  man  then  receives  a  card,  recommending 
to  his  use  certain  machines  tending  to  develop  those  muscles  in  which 
he  is  weak.  The  regular  class  exercises  occupy  about  halt  an  hour, 
and  he  is  expected  to  occupy  the  rest  of  the  hour  in  this  special  work 
The  development  in  college  has  been  very  gratifying,  and  a  frequent 


222         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

question  asked  me  by  visitors  is:  "Are  all  mutes,  naturally,  such 
straight,  strong,  healthy  looking  men  ?" 

I  notice  improvement  in  new  men,  first,  in  general  bearing  and 
elasticity  of  step,  as  well  as  a  new  light  in  what  was,  at  first,  some- 
times rather  a  dull  eye.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  the  deaf  and 
dumb  are  apt  to  stoop  somewhat,  probably  from  a  constant  habit  of 
bending  forward  to  see  more  distinctly  in  sign  and  lip  reading.  I 
know  the  the  gymnasium  at  Kendall  Green  has  done  much  to  cor- 
rect that  tendency. 

In  the  matter  of  lung  development,  I  doubt  if  sufficient  attention 
has  been  called  to  the  disadvantage  the  mute  labors  under  in  missing 
the  constant  use  and  consequent  strengthening  of  the  lungs  and  dia- 
phragm in  ordinary  speaking  and  singing.  The  story  is  told  of  some 
famous  tenor,  that  in  rehearsing  a  new  score  he  struck  for  a  high 
note;  it  failed  to  come,  and  summoning  all  his  strength  he  essayed  a 
second  time;  this  time  it  rang  out  clear  and  strong,  but  he  felt  a  sud- 
den weakness  in  his  shoulder.  On  examination  it  was  found  he  had 
broken  his  own  collar-bone  in  the  strain  brought  to  bear  on  it  by  the 
muscles  required  to  hold  the  chest  firmly  during  this  remarkable 
vocal  effort.  I  cannot  vouch  for  this  story,  but  the  mere  fact  of  its 
being  told  shows  the  immense  amount  of*  muscular  development 
which  must  result  from  our  daily  speaking  and  singing.  I  cannot 
but  believe  that  a  simple  exercise  which  should  consist  merely  in 
having  a  class  of  mute  children,  several  times  a  day,  throw  the  shoul- 
ders back,  inflate  the  lungs,  and  give  utterance  to  any  vocal  sound 
whatever,  provided  it  was  given  with  a  will,  would  be  of  great  advan- 
tage in  strengthening  the  lungs  and  thus  more  completely  purifying 
the  blood  and  improving  the  general  health. 

One  trouble  which  presented  itself  was  to  convey  the  idea  of  rhythm, 
and  thus  enable  the  students  to  keep  step  in  marching.  A  sharp 
snare  drum  solved  this  problem;  most  could  feel  the  vibration  and 
they  carried  the  others  with  them  by  that  sympathy  which  always 
exists  in  masses  of  mankind. 

I  have  upon  the  board  a  few  samples  of  gratifying  results  in  both 
increased  size  and  symmetry,  simply  to  make  my  meaning  clearer. 
The  average  chest  girth  of  about  fifty  young  men  showed  the  follow- 
ing gains: 

November.    May. 

Inflated __ 897        .918 

Repose .853        .§64 

The  measurements  given  are  decimals  of  a  meter. 
The  greatest  gain  in  chest  girth  was: 

November.    May. 

Inflated 890        .972 

Repose 855        .910 

Some  interesting  cases  occurred  of  the  development  of  limbs  into 
symmetrical  proportions  where  marked  discrepancies  existed  when 
the  first  measurements  were  taken. 

A  single  illustration  will  be  sufficient: 

November.  31ay. 

Right  calf 377  .388 

LeYtcalf 374  .388 

Upper  right  arm 297  .305 

Upper  left  arm 300  .305 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE  DEAF.  223 

In  concluding,  I  would  say:  See  that  your  exercises  are  regular, 
methodical,  arid  judicious. 

A  small  amount  of  exercise  taken  regularly  is  worth  far  more  than 
great  exertions  made  spasmodically.  An  hour  a  day,  four  days  in 
the  week,  during  one's  school  life,  doesn't  seem  much  to  give  to  these 
bodies  of  ours,  which  we  all  hope  to  make  last  through  the  threescore 
years  and  ten  allotted  to  mankind. 

Let  exercise  be  methodical;  don't  put  any  one  through  an  exercise 
unless  he  knows  what  it  is  for.  Any  child  can  be  taught  anatomy 
and  physiology  enough  for  this.  Let  him  know  and  see  and  feel  what 
muscles  he  is  using,  and  what  the  effect  will  be. 

Let  exercise  he  judicious;  use  a  muscle  until  it  is  tired,  but  not  until 
it  is  strained.  In  the  former  case  strength  will  result;  in  the  latter, 
lameness. 

Put  in  your  libraries  books  on  the  subject,  and  start  the  boys  and 
girls  to  reading  them.  Blakie's  "How  to  Get  Strong  and  How  to 
Keep  So,"  "Strong  Bodies  for  Our  Boys  and  Girls,"  and  Sargent's 
manuals  of  exercise  will  be  sufficient. 

Don't  try  to  raise  up  gymnasts,  but  perfected  human  beings.  If 
any  one  has  a  talent  for  the  heavy  apparatus,  can  shine  on  the 
parallels,  the  springboard,  the  horizontal  bar,  so  much  the  better; 
encourage  him;  it  will  add  interest  and  be  a  good  thing;  but  it  isn't 
necessary  that  a  finely  formed  man  or  woman  should  ever  even  see 
the  heavy  apparatus.  Dexterity  on  the  heavy  apparatus  is  the  result 
rather  than  the  means  of  physical  development. 

Above  all  things,  start  in  early  with  this  work.  More  can  be  done  in 
one  year  while  a  child  is  growing  than  in  five  after  he  is  grown.  You 
can  hardly  begin  too  early  with  the  little  ones.  I  will  not  say,  "  Give 
them  a  dumb-bell  for  a  rattle,  and  a  pulley  weight  instead  of  a 
go-cart;"  but  I  trust  you  get  the  idea.  Make  of  them,  not  athletes,  but 
athletic,  strong,  symmetrical  men  arid  women. 

Prof.  E.  A.  Fay:  I  should  like  to  bear  my  testimony  as  a  member 
of  the  Faculty  of  the  institution  in  Washington  of  the  very  great 
benefit  which  our  students  have  received  from  the  instruction  in 
gymnastics  given  by  Mr.  Chickering.  We  have  seen  the  benefit  in 
the  improved  health  of  the  pupils,  the  largely  diminished  visits  of 
the  physician  and  the  consequent  reduction  of  his  bills,  and  in  the 
general  good  order  and  good  conduct  of  the  students,  that  superfluous 
steam  which  is  usually  generated  among  a  body  of  young  men  being 
worked  off'  in  the  gymnasium  instead  of  in  the  college  halls;  also  in 
their  improved  mental  bearing.  Upon  one  of  our  recent  presenta- 
tion days  one  of  our  Directors  expressed  his  great  surprise  at  the 
steady  tread  and  fine  manly  bearing  of  our  students,  and  asked  us 
how  we  could  explain  it.  The  explanation  was  that  all  of  these 
young  men  that  graduated  had  had  Mr.  Chickering's  gymnastic  train- 
ing during  the  whole  of  their  college  course,  and  the  effect  was  evi- 
dent in  their  bearing  and  appearance.  There  is  no  department  of 
our  college  work  to  which  we  attach  more  value  than  to  the  gym- 
nastic department. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  wish  to  say  here  that  our  experience  during  the  past 
year,  in  which  we  have  enjoyed  a  new  gymnasium,  is  in  perfect  accord 
with  every  point  that  the  writer  has  made,  and  with  the  remarks  or 
the  last  speaker.  I  have  had  nothing  that  has  relieved  me  so  much 
in  the  matter  of  discipline  during  the  past  year  as  the  use  of  the 
gymnasium.    The  health  of  our  pupils  has  also  been  much  improved 


224  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

by  it.  We  give  our  girls  an  opportunity  to  enjoy  the  gymnasium  as 
well  as  the  boys. 

Dr.  E.  A.  Fay:  And  so  do  we. 

Dr.  Gillett:  And  the  experience  of  the  Illinois  institution  is  going 
to  be  the  same.     [Applause.] 

The  following  paper,  entitled  "Our  Institutions  as  Temporary  Homes 
for  the  Deaf,"  was  then  read  by  Dr.  G.  0.  Fay,  of  Hartford: 

OUR   INSTITUTIONS   AS   TEMPORARY   HOMES   FOR   THE   DEAF. 

In  addition  to  the  work  of  the  school,  institutions  also  provide  the 
various  ministry  of  the  well  ordered  home.  Correct  personal  habits 
and  exemplary  morals,  social  refinements  and  services  of  worship, 
wholesome  recreations,  hospital  care,  and  dietary  regulations;  a  dis- 
cipline elastic,  as  gentle  as  the  feeblest,  yet  sufficiently  resolute  to 
control  the  most  sturdy;  a  spirit  of  liberty  united  with  equitable  sys- 
tem; an  eye  seeing  everything  and  nothing;  a  supervising  energy  that 
shall  rid  the  administration  of  idleness,  vice,  and  presumption;  a 
harmonizing  power  that  shall  cause  the  general  current  to  set  one 
way  without  eddies,  frost,  or  division;  a  commanding  superiority  of 
character  that  shall  attract  rather  than  enforce — these  and  other 
desirable  conditions  are  to  be  provided,  if  brick  walls  are  to  be  quick- 
ened into  a  living,  a  real  institution.  The  parent,  who  has  never 
allowed  his  child  to  sleep  away  from  the  parental  roof  a  night,  intrusts 
to  the  institution  the  child's  whole  life,  substantially,  for  ten  years, 
and  those  the  most  plastic.  How  confiding  the  trust!  How  serious 
the  responsibility! 

An  institution  is  more  likely  to  flourish  where  the  authority  of  the 
school  and  of  the  household  rests  in  the  same  person.  Singleness, 
directness,  and  symmetry  of  management  can  be  best  secured  by  the 
employment,  in  judicious  division  and  gradation,  of  a  sufficient  staff 
of  assistants.  Independent  departments,  not  necessarily  inharmoni- 
ous, frequently  are  so.  The  importance  of  high  character  and  of 
ability,  of  technical  education  and  of  easy  social  facility,  at  the  head 
of  the  educational  department,  is  generally  conceded.  The  domestic 
department,  even  when  independent,  does  not  always  fare  as  well. 
And  yet  personal  qualities,  equally  high,  have  full  scope  in  the 
management  of  its  various  affairs.  The  educating  influence  of  the 
eighteen  hours  spent  daily  in  the  domestic  department  is  as  impor- 
tant as  that  of  the  six  spent  in  the  school-room  five  days  of  the  week. 
The  purchase  and  use  of  supplies,  the  keeping  of  accounts,  the  repair 
of  buildings,  and  the  care  of  stock,  important  and  indispensable,  are 
not  so  important  as  the  ability  to  mingle  socially,  controllingly,  with 
the  children  themselves.  Good  business  qualities  do  not  necessarily 
qualify  an  officer  to  be  the  head  of  a  family  of  young  people,  from 
two  hundred  to  five  hundred  in  number,  all  using  habitually  a  lan- 
guage with  which  he  may  be  wholly  unacquainted,  and  to  learn  which 
he  may  be  too  old,  too  busy,  or  entirely  indifferent. 

Institutions  should  be  as  large  as  is  consistent  with  thorough  con- 
trol. Several  small  schools  are  likely  to  be,  each  of  them,  inferior  in 
quality  to  the  same  united.  They  are,  separate,  the  ungraded,  poorly 
equipped,  rudely  taught  schools  of  sparsely  settled  districts  as  com- 
pared with  the  cultivated  schools  of  populous  centers.  They  are  the 
cobbler's  shop  of  the  cross-roads  as  compared  with  the  factory,  the 
machine  shop,  of  the  city.    A  degree  of  concentration  in  any  art  is 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  225 

favorable,  is  essential,  to  its  best  development.  The  best  pantomime, 
the  best  equipments,  the  best  classification,  the  best  instruction,  the 
best  body  of  opinion,  sentiment,  and  character,  will  be  found  in  the 
larger  schools,  when  well  administered.  A  school  of  two  hundred  will 
produce  better  results  than  any  smaller.  When  mutual  acquaintance 
is  becoming  slight,  when  executive  energy  fails  to  reach  and  to  har- 
monize details,  when  neglect,  abuse,  or  misconduct  can  exist  for  pro- 
longed periods  unnoticed  or  concealed,  when  the  necessary  daily 
tactics  of  the  household  are  burdensome  and  oppressive,  then,  and 
not  till  then,  has  the  institution  passed  the  true  limit  of  its  popula- 
tion, and  aggregation  has  become  an  evil.  Deaf  children  cannot  be 
sorted  out  and  locked  away,  indefinitely,  in  wards,  like  insane  patients 
and  criminals.  General  assemblage  for  various  purposes  and  free 
social  circulation  must  and  should  frequently  occur  throughout  the 
day. 

The  sexes  will  be  present  at  all  institutions  in  the  ratio  of  three 
males  to  two  females — a  fact  not  inconsistent  with  equality  of  the 
sexes  at  home.  This  curious  inequality  in  number  results  from  a 
degree  of  popular  indifference  to  female  education,  the  greater  sensi- 
tiveness of  the  sex  itself,  and  a  greater  parental  solicitude  for  the 
security  of  daughters  away  from  home.  This  proportion  in  demand 
can  be  relied  upon  in  the  construction  of  buildings. 

The  officers  and  employes  of  an  institution  are  emphatically,  more 
than  books,  the  educating  world  of  the  pupil.  They  should  possess 
the  best  personal  qualities  of  the  best  homes.  They  should  be  safe, 
agreeable,  profitable  associates  for  the  pupils  out  of  school  as  well  as 
in  it.  A  certain  degree  of  association  with  the  humblest  employe  is 
inevitable,  nor  is  it  altogether  undesirable.  It  should  be  of  a  useful, 
never  of  a  corrupting,  or  of  a  merely  negative  character.  The  possi- 
bility of  neglect,  abuse,  and  injury  in  any  case,  and  their  occasional 
occurrence  to  a  shocking  extent,  suggest  the  need  of  the  utmost  care 
in  appointments,  as  well  as  of  sleepless  vigilance  in  subsequent  over- 
sight. The  institution,  like  the  home,  embraces  the  interior  life,  the 
confidential  experience  of  many  persons.  Its  officers  should  be  faith- 
ful to  its  domestic  characteristics,  and  refrain,  when  justice,  delicacy, 
and  charity  forbid,  from  the  public  exposure  or  rude  exhibition  of  its 
intimate  events  and  incidents,  however  innocent  or  trivial.  Such 
honor, ;  crupulous  and  discreet,  will  promote  confidence  and  cooper- 
ation between  parents  and  officers.  Happy  is  the  institution  whose 
officers,  of  either  sex,  deserve  such  trust ! 

The  appointing  power  in  our  country  is,  in  fact,  too  often  heed- 
lessly indifferent  to  the  qualifications  and  conduct  of  appointees. 
Some  executive  officers,  at  the  time  of  their  appointment,  know 
nothing  of,  and  some  even  thereafter  care  to  know  nothing  of,  the 
natural  language  of  the  deaf.  Physicians  and  supervisors  are  often 
appointed  or  removed  upon  the  exigencies  of  national  and  State 
politics.  Stewardships,  family  superintendencies,  and  matronships 
are  doled  out  as  rewards  by  the  secret  service  or  pension  departments 
of  political  parties.  Our  parties  should  insist  upon  the  best  adminis- 
tration, and  do  well  to  depute  the  authority  to  secure  it  to  trustee!, 
reliable  men  of  their  own  faith.  Mixed  boards  may  be  unmixed 
evils.  Trustees  of  any  faith  prostitute  their  trust,  however,  when 
they  bond  the  appointments  which  they  control  in  payment  of  politi- 
cal debts,  or  when  they  use  the  educational  interests  of  the  deaf,  and  the 
15d 


226         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

care  of  them,  as  political  capital  mainly.  The  people  have  not  estab- 
lished these  institutions,  and  do  not  now  support  them  at  heavy  cost, 
with  a  view  to  providing  temporary  homes  for  intriguing  or  starving 
partisans.  The  people  did  not  build  them  to  be  converted  into  party 
ambulances. 

Institution  life  should  be  organized  with  leading  reference  to  the 
welfare  of  the  pupils  themselves.  In  the  appropriation  of  rooms, 
the  arrangement  of  school  hours,  the  assignment  of  housework,  the 
consumption  of  supplies,  the  general  use  of  the  premises,  large  oppor- 
tunity exists  for  officers  to  provide  for  themselves  first,  and  incident- 
ally for  pupils.  This  is  not  parental ;  it  is  simply  and  only  mercenary. 
Evils  of  this  nature  have  led,  sometimes,  to  the  exclusion  of  the 
domestic  life  of  all  adults,  or  of  as  many  as  possible,  from  the  insti- 
tution building.  Social  privation  is  the  chief  calamity  of  the  deaf, 
and  should  be  alleviated  by  every  reasonable  expedient.  Properly 
regulated  and  pervaded  by  a  generous  devotion  to  the  welfare  and 
progress  of  the  pupils,  the  incidental  society  of  as  many  adults  as 
possible — at  any  rate,  of  teachers  and  employes — is  beneficial,  and 
should  be  recognized,  encouraged,  and  regulated  byrcareful  provision 
and  privilege.  A  spirit  of  generous  interest  in  the  deaf  will  also  pro- 
tect the  duller,  perhaps  uninteresting,  pupils  from  premature  dis- 
missal. Pupils  should  not  be  left  to  suffer  from  delayed  promotions 
and  hasty  removals  in  the  interest  or  at  the  caprice  of  ambitious  or 
impatient  teachers.  Institutions  should  not  be  administered  prima- 
rily for  the  comfort  of  a  staff  of  officers,  or  chiefly  in  behalf  of-  the 
brighter  and  more  attractive  children. 

Institutions  having  the  whole  care  of  children  between  the  years 
of  ten  and  twenty — children  with  whom  communication  will  always 
be  especially  difficult — owe  them  an  industrial  training.  The  com- 
bination of  this  with  school  work  has  resulted  widely  in  the  enforce- 
ment of  work  hours  in  the  morning  and  in  the  afternoon  of  each 
day.  The  full  employment  of  the  foreman,  in  itself  desirable,  has 
tended  to  an  undue  extension  of  the  daily  time  of  the  pupil.  Of  late, 
and,  as  a  remedy  for  obvious  effects,  two  rotating  systems  have  been 
put  into  operation.  By  one,  pupils  attend  school  half- a  day,  and 
work  the  other  half.  By  the  other,  pupils  attend  school  two  thirds  of 
the  day,  and  work  one  third.  This  latter  proportion  is  preferable, 
because  sufficient.  The  pupil  becomes  reasonably  proficient  in  his 
trade,  and  has  more  time  for  school  work.  The  urgent,  predominant 
importance  of  this  with  the  deaf  is  felt  keenly  by  the  older  classes, 
and  by  the  better  scholars.  Those  trades  are  indicated  which,  other 
things  being  equal,  require  the  least  social  cooperation.  Shoemaking, 
carpentery,  tailoring,  printing,  gardening,  and  the  arts  of  design,  have 
proved  most  satisfactory. 

Day  schools  for  the  deaf  are  sustained  in  some  of  our  large  cities. 
The  public  is  relieved  from  the  support  and  care  of  the  pupil  out  of 
school  hours;  and  the  prolonged,  painful  separation  of  parent  from 
pupil,  incidental  to  institution  life,  is  escaped.  Day  scholars,  however 
excellent  their  instruction  may  be,  do  not  advance  so  rapidly  as  insti- 
tution scholars.  Home  life — which  at  the  outset  could,  confessedly, 
do  little  or  nothing  toward  their  education — does  but  little  more  at  a 
later  period.  Home  life  means  far  less,  educationally,  to  the  deaf  than 
it  does  to  the  hearing.  Deaf  children  at  home  measurably  stagnate 
or  drift.  The  devoted  mother,  the  faithful  sister,  the  attentive  brother, 
willing  to  be  the  constant  literary  companion  of  the  one  deaf  mem- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  227 

ber  of  the  household,  are  rarely  met  with.  In  the  busy  life  of  the 
family,  the  deaf  one,  at  any  age,  is  left  to  himself,  not  exactly  inten- 
tionally, perhaps  unavoidably.  Affection  is  lavished,  but  'literary 
companionship  is  omitted.  Like  the  frog  in  the  well,  the  school  of 
the  day  is  severely  taxed  to  make  up  for  the  night's  decline.  The 
plea  that  such  pupils  practice  at  home  what  they  learn  at  school  is 
largely  contradicted  by  their  experience. 

Should  institutions  for  the  deaf  have  a  cottage  or  a  unitary  char- 
acter? Each  system  of  construction  has  characteristic  advantages. 
With  the  deaf,  the  great  importance  of  intelligent  society,  a  condition 
to  be  scrupulously  fostered,  and  the  necessity  for  unusual  attention  to 
details  in  administration,  turn  the  scale  in  favor  of  the  unitary  plan. 
Very  satisfactory  models  of  institution  buildings  now  exist  in  the 
country.  Size,  the  shifting  tenure  of  service,  the  ignorance  of  em- 
ployes, accidents,  and,  most  important,  incendiary  attempts,  not 
infrequently  occurring,  indicate  the  undoubted  wisdom  of  building 
fireproof. 

A  notion  has  prevailed  that  institutions  for  the  deaf  are  unneces- 
sarily large,  and  their  normal  number  of  pupils  is  by  some  compared 
unfavorably  with  the  capacity  of  the  hospitals  for  the  insane.  The 
deaf  require  superficial  space  for  the  whole  number  in  a  dining-room, 
in  dormitories,  in  sitting-rooms,  in  school-rooms,  in  an  assembly- 
room,  and  in  play-rooms.  Other  rooms  are  also  needed  for  the  con- 
venient and  successful  management  of  a  large  household.  Each  pupil 
should  have  a  single  bed  and  a  single  desk  in  both  study  and  school- 
room, with  large  leeway.  The  style  of  support  should  be  inviting  to 
the  better  class  of  citizens,  and  will,  of  course,  be  acceptable  to  the 
poorer.  There  should  be  no  disposition,  under  the  pretext  of  econ- 
omy, to  run  it  down  to  a  pauper  basis.  Such  parsimony  will  work  a 
blight.  The  grounds  should  be,  for  suitable  recreation  and  ornament, 
twenty-five  acres  in  extent.  If  the  buildings  are  fireproof,  and  then 
only,  they  need  not  be  contiguous  to  a  large  town  or  city. 

But  the  details  of  philosophy,  of  school  methods,  and  of  adminis- 
trative management,  with  all  occurring  cautions  and  precautions,  are 
endless.  Institutions  for  the  deaf,  to  deserve  the  name,  must  embrace 
and  provide  for  the  whole  daily  life  of  the  pupil,  from  seed  to  fruit, 
in  widest  circle.  The  best  elements  of  the  home,  of  the  school,  of 
every  department  of  human  life,  should  be  so  gathered,  combined, 
and  administered  as  to  promote,  in  the  period  of  his  youth,  his  highest 
educational  well-being,  and  so  to  qualify  him,  the  peer  of  the  hearing, 
to  discharge  with  pleasure  and  honor  the  full  functions  of  an  Ameri- 
can citizen.  The  State,  the  nation,  as  well  as  corporations  municipal, 
and  those  charitable,  composed  of  private  citizens,  among  all  their 
various  trusts,  assume  no  one  of  greater  delicacy,  difficulty,  impor- 
tance, or  promise.  Theirs  is  the  privilege,  receiving  the  full  light  of 
the  past  and  acting  up  to  the  opportunities  of  the  present,  to  lay 
foundations  that  will  not  crumble  beneath  the  wiser  building  of  the 
future. 

The  Chairman:  These  four  papers  are  now  before  the  convention 
for  discussion. 

Hon.  Erastus  Brooks:  I  would  like  to  say  a  word  or  two  upon 
these  subjects.  In  the  first  place  I  regard  the  subject  of  mechanical 
education  as  the  one  great  leading  subject  of  the  country.  If  there 
is  to  be  an  end  to  the  agitations  which  disturb  our  country  from  one 
extreme  to  the  other,  the  element  for  the  mending  of  the  present 


228  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

disastrous  state  of  things  is  to  be  found,  in  my  judgment,  in  the 
mechanical  education  of  the  pupils  in  the  several  institutions  of  the 
country. 

I  need  not  say  to  an  intelligent  audience  like  this  what  transpires 
almost  every  day  in  the  year;  how  labor  and  capital  are  in  constant 
conflict;  what  a  disturbance  there  is  in  everything  which  relates  to 
labor,  and  to  almost  every  department  of  labor;  what  bloody  conflicts 
have  occurred  in  the  great  cities  of  the  Union;  how  many  thousands 
and  tens  of  thousands  of  people  are  idle;  how  everywhere  the  com- 
munity is  agitated  and  disturbed  as  almost  never  before,  in  regard  to 
the  labor  of  the  country.  Here  in  California  in  regard  to  the  Chinese, 
and  elsewhere  in  regard  to  the  large  importations  from  abroad  of 
thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  of  people  who  undertake  to  control 
the  capital  and  regulate  the  labor  of  the  country. 

In  the  olden  time,  within  my  memory  and  the  memory  of  some 
present,  it  was  the  rule  to  employ  apprentices  to  serve,  not  as  in  En- 
gland for  the  long  term  of  seven  years,  but  to  have  an  actual  appren- 
ticeship by  the  consent  of  the  parent,  the  guardian,  and  employer. 
That  custom  has  all  gone.  Boys  who  learn  trades,  while  learning 
them  are  not  satisfied ;  they  stay  a  little  while  with  the  employer  and 
then  strike  out  for  themselves  long  before  the  age  of  twenty-one, 
claiming  all  of  the  emoluments  and  immunities  which  belong  to  the 
man  who  has  served  his  long  term  of  apprenticeship.  One  conse- 
quence of  this  is  the  almost  total  abolition  of  what  is  called  the 
apprentice  system. 

Now  I  desire  to  say  a  word  in  regard  to  the  division  of  labor,  so  called. 
In  my  judgment,  in  an  institution  like  this,  Mr.  President,  or  like 
the  one  that  I  in  part  represent  here,  it  is  possible,  without  interfer- 
ing with  any  educational  duty  whatever,  to  make  a  man  or  a  woman 
qualified  for  self  support  when  they  leave  the  institutions  with  which 
they  are  connected. 

In  our  institution  we  make  as  perfect  a  printer  as  the  graduate  from 
any  of  the  newspaper  offices  of  the  country.  We  print  our  annual 
reports.  We  have  asked  the  Legislature  of  the  State  to  pay  us  as 
much  for  the  type  setting  and  piece  work  which  belongs  to  the  print- 
ing of  the  "Annual  Report"  as  the  Public  Printer  would  receive  if 
the  work  was  done  by  him. 

We  make  carpenters  who  are  qualified  for  employment  when  they 
leave  the  institution.  We  have  qualified  men  to  teach  carpenters 
and  joiners  and  cabinet  makers;  farmers  qualified  to  take  care  of  the 
grounds  and  produce  what  is  necessary  in  the  protection  and  improve- 
ment of  the  lands  allotted  to  them. 

We  have  engaged,  as  you  have  heard  this  morning  in  the  paper 
read  here,  in  the  art  department,  and  in  the  future  of  that  art  depart- 
ment, to  provide  employment  for  hundreds  who  in  the  future  will 
graduate  from  that  institution.  And  I  recommend  this  most  heartily 
to  every  institution.  Why?  In  the  first  place,  among  the  people  at 
large  there  is  a  sympathy  with  those  who  are  unfortunate  enough  to 
be  deaf.  In  the  next  place,  a  deaf  pupil  may  be  just  as  well  qualified 
to  make  a  good  drawing,  a  good  picture,  or  a  good  painting  as  a  mis- 
cellaneous class  of  people  who  do  not  belong  to  these  institutions. 
And  hence  the  importance  in  regard  to  art  and  in  regard  to  mechan- 
ics, not  only  in  institutions  for  the  instruction  of  the  deaf,  but  in  all 
of  the  institutions  of  the  country  for  qualifying  those  who  are  pupils 
in  any  school,  for  the  future  occupations  of  life. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF  THE   DEAF.  229 

The  Superintendent  of  this  institution  was  pleased  to  make  some 
allusion  to  President  White,  of  the  Cornell  University,  of  which  I  was 
a  Trustee.  There  we  do  more  in  regard  to  mechanical  education  than 
anything  else.  One  of  our  liberal  citizens  has  given  $150,000  for 
teaching  the  students  their  mechanical  work. 

One  of  the  great  improvements  of  our  own  time  is  in  what  is  called 
polytechnic  education,  in  which  pupils  are  directed,  under  the  wise 
advice  of  parents  and  directors.  And  let  me  say  this  for  the  encour- 
agement of  others:  that  we  have  never  graduated  a  boy  from  the  Cor- 
nell University,  or  the  mechanical  department  of  that  institution, 
whose  services  have  not  been  sought  for  long  before  the  time  of  his 
graduation.  And  when,  in  an  institution  like  this,  and  kindred 
institutions,  you  are  able  to  say,  "  Here,  at  least,  is  the  beginning  of  a 
good  carpenter,  a  good  joiner,  a  good  printer,  or  a  good  artist,  its 
future  is  as  certain  wherever  material  support  is  necessary,  as  that 
day  follows  night.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  I  find  in  the  question  box  the  following  question, 
"  Can  a  teacher  do  good  work  for  eight  hours  a  day?"  and  will  request 
Professor  Clark,  of  Arkansas,  to  reply. 

Mr.  Clark:  There  are  several  points  to  be  considered  in  answering 
that  question.  My  friend,  Mr.  Brooks,  for  whom  I  have  the  greatest 
respect  and  reverence,  a  few  days  ago  drew  our  attention  to  the  old 
fashioned  school  teacher  of  many  years  ago.  That  brought  up  to  my 
mind  the  idea  of  a  man,  sitting  in  a  chair,  calling  up  the  spelling 
class  and  giving  it  the  words,  and  so  forth.  I  don't  see  any  reason 
why  a  man  cannot  do  that  sort  of  teaching  as  long  as  he  can  keep 
awake;  I  would  not  say  eight  hours,  but  all  the  rest  of  his  time 
between  his  eating  and  sleeping,  and  a  little  exercise,  he  can  devote 
to  that  kind  of  teaching.  But  I  know  of  no  man  that  I  can  think  of 
that  can  teach  as  I  require  my  teachers  in  Arkansas  to  teach  for  eight 
hours  a  day.  There  may  be  some  such  men,  but  I  do  not  know  them. 
In  the  course  of  my  life  I  have  tried  many  different  occupations.  I 
have  stood  guard  duty  four  hours  on  and  four  hours  off  during  a  month 
at  a  time;  I  have  been  in  the  saddle  from  sunrise  until  long  after  sunset; 
and,  if  you  can  call  it  work,  I  have  followed  a  dog,  with  a  gun,  as  long 
as  I  could  see  to  shoot,  and  I  never  in  all  my  life  felt  so  utterly  used 
up  as  at  the  end  of  eight  hours  teaching  after  the  first  week  or  two  of 
a  session.  .1  do  not  think  that  any  man  or  woman  can  do  good,  con- 
scientious work  in  the  school-room  for  eight  hours. 

Dr.  Peet,  in  his  paper  the  other  day,  explained  their  system  of 
instruction  in  New  York.  He  said  the  teacher  sits  in  a  chair,  calls 
up  a  pupil,  and  tells  him  to  write  an  exercise  upon  the  slate  That 
system  was  not  in  vogue  in  New  York  when  I  taught  there.  I  think 
I  could  teach  eight  hours  that  way.    [Laughter  and  applause.] 

Dr.  Peet:  I  think  the  remarks  of  the  last  speaker  call  for  a  reply. 
The  teacher  who  has  succeeded  him  has  worked  as  hard,  as. con- 
stantly, vigorouslv,  and  successfully,  as  he  himself  did  in  the  previous 
vear.  And  the  sitting  of  a  teacher  in  our  institution,  when  he  is  get- 
ting out  every  single  particle  of  work,  and  when  every  nerve  of  the 
teacher  is  strained,  and  when  he  is  taking  the  whole  magnetism  out 
of  himself  and  putting  it  in  his  pupils,  is  not  ordinary  sitting  lhe 
pupil  comes  up  and  answers  the  question ;  the  teacher  s  whole  thought 
is  concentrated  upon  him,  and  the  teacher  sits,  perhaps,  in  order  not 
to  obstruct  the  view  of  his  pupils.    Standing  is  not  work.     Ine 


230  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

imparting  of  the  nervous  energy  and  of  the  whole  mind  and  putting 
it  into  the  pupil  is  work.     [Applause.] 

Mr.  J.  A.  Kennedy,  of  Illinois:  There  are  different  ways  of  looking 
at  this  subject.  We  change  our  classes  every  hour,  and  do  not  keep 
the  same  class  all  day.  If  we  did,  I  think  it  would  be  a  rather  long 
day's  work.  Every  hour  we  bring  in  a  new  class,  which  is  resting  to 
us.  I  think  I  prefer  that  to  keeping  one  class.  I  had  rather  teach 
eight  hours  with  that  variety  or  change  than  to  teach  the  same  class 
for  five  hours.  The  teachers  in  our  institution  are  also  exempt  from 
the  slavish  monitor  duty  at  night.  I  had  rather  teach  two  hours  in 
school  than  to  take  charge  of  the  boys  in  their  study  at  night.  We 
are  exempt  from  Sunday  teaching,  also,  more  than  teachers  are  in 
other  institutions,  perhaps.  In  this  way  I  can  stand  seven  or  eight 
hours'  work  as  well  as  I  used  to  five. 

Mr.  Noyes:  Can  the  pupils  stand  eight  hours  work  every  day? 

The  Chairman:  I  have  never  had  any  observation  in  that. 

Hon.  Erastus  Brooks:  The  pupils  in  our  institution  never  spend 
eight  hours  a  day  in  brain  education;  nor  do  I  think  they  do  in  any 
other.  They  may  spend  four  of  it  in  the  mechanical  department,  or 
two  of  it.  The  idea  has  been  well  expressed  by  the  last  speaker  here, 
that  we  should  give  a  variety  during  these  eight  hours  of  occupation. 
That  variety  may  relieve  both  teacher  and  pupil,  and  in  a  well  con- 
ducted institution  it  does  relieve  both. 

Mr.  James  Denison,  of  Washington  (a  deaf-mute):  Two  or  three 
years  ago  I  visited  the  New  York  institution,  and  in  their  school-room 
every  teacher  assured  me  that  he  found  eight  hours  work  too  much; 
that  he  could  not  do  eight  hours  continuous  work  and  do  it  well. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  in  the  question  box  is,  "How 
can  institution  papers  best  help  in  the  education  of  the  deaf?" 

Mr.  Ely:  Everything  helps  in  the  education  of  the  deaf  that  pro- 
motes their  home  life  in  the  institution;  their  social,  moral,  and 
religious  life.  The  institution  papers  should  be  in  careful  hands.  It 
is  one  of  the  teachers  of  the  institution;  and  as  Dr.  Fay  once  well 
remarked  in  speaking  upon  this  subject,  there  is  probably  no  teacher 
in  the  institution  who  has  more  influence  than  a  well  conducted 
paper  published  by  the  institution,  which  is  read  by  the  pupils.  In 
the  first  place  I  would  be  very  careful  to  tell  what  it  should  not  be; 
I  would  be  very  careful  that  the  paper  should  not  deal  too  much  in 
gossip;  and  I  would  be  very  careful  that  the  home  life  is  not  invaded 
by  the  paper  which  is  published.  I  would  not  rule  out  all  personal 
matters,  for  children  are  interested  in  items  about  the  people  whom 
they  meet  every  day  and  whom  they  know.  They  may  be  trifling  to 
other  persons,  but  they  are  of  considerable  importance  to  them,  and 
may  be  a  help  in  inducing  them  to  read  the  paper.  I  would  make 
very  careful  selections,  to  suit  them  to  the  intelligent  pupil.  We  have 
quite  a  number  of  pupils,  and  to  help  them  to  read  we  must  prepare 
matter  for  them,  either  selected  or  written;  and  it  is  an  excellent  way 
for  the  teacher  of  the  institution  to  write  short  articles  in  language 
which  they  know  better  than  anybody  is  best  suited  to  the  pupil. 

Then  I  would  have  short  stories,  written  by  the  pupils,  occasionally 
published,  after  being  corrected  by  the  teacher,  as  an  encouragement 
and  reward  to  them.  Then  I  would  bring  the  paper  into  the  school- 
room, and  teach  the  pupils  there  how  to  read  it;  I  would  take  it  into 
the  youngest  class  capable  of  reading  short  sentences,  and  have  them 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  231 

read  and  give  the  meaning  of  the  paragraphs,  and  so  in  the  older 
classes. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  is  referred  to  Dr.  Gillett,  and 
is  as  follows:  "Are  two  heads  ever  beneficial  to  an  institution?" 

I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  never.  It  is  contrary  to  human 
nature.  When  two  generals  are  best  for  an  army,  when  two  captain- 
are  best  for  a  man-of-war,  then,  perhaps,  we  may  say  that  two  heads 
are  best  for  an  institution.  That  experiment  has  been  tried  all  over 
this  country,  pretty  nearly — certainly  all  over  the  East  and  Mil 
sippi  Valley;  and  as  far  as  my  information  goes,  it  has  been  a  failure 
in  every  case,  and  will  be,  I  believe,  until  the  advent  of  the  millenimn. 

I  know  that  my  honorable  and  respected  friend  here,  Mr.  Brooks, 
the  other  day  mentioned  that  in  the  New  York  institution  they  had 
two  heads,  and  that  he  was  satisfied  with  it.  But  he  perhaps  does  not 
know  as  well  as  some  of  us  know  how  there  are  little  birds  nying  from 
institution  to  institution ;  and  I  have  no  doubt  that  if  the  officers  of 
the  New  York  institution  were  all  present,  and  we  could  place  them 
on  the  witness  stand  under  oath,  they  would  show  a  different  state  of 
affairs  than  that  which  he  supposes  to  exist  in  that  institution.  [Ap- 
plause.] If  they  did  not,  I  would  fall  back  on  the  fact  which  I  believe 
to  be  true,  that  New  York  is  the  exception,  and  is  the  only  place  on 
this  footstool  of  our  heavenly  Father  where  the  people  tiave  sufficient 
of  divine  grace  to  enable  them  to  do  their  work  and  exist  in  that  way. 
[Laughter  and  applause.] 

Hon.  Erastus  Brooks:  Right  here  I  may  say  a  word  in  defense  of 
myself.  It  has  been  a  maxim  of  mine  as  far  back  as  I  can  remember 
that  "All  of  nature's  differences  make  all  nature's  peace." 

I  want  to  say  in  regard  to  the  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb 
in  that  city,  that  we  have  tried  one-man  power;  and  we  have  tried 
what  my  friend  chooses  to  call  the  two-man  power.  A  one-man  power 
in  our  institution  takes  entire  control  of  the  educational  department 
and  everything  which  belongs  to  it.  He  is  the  Principal  of  the  insti- 
tution; and  that  is  work  enough  for  one  man  in  an  institution  like 
that.  The  Superintendent,  as  I  said  the  other  day,  takes  charge  of 
the  material  things.  He  buys  what  is  necessary,  he  sells  what  is 
necessary,  he  looks  after  the  farm  and  all  produce  whatsoever,  and 
he  takes  charge  of  the  boys  and  girls  when  they  are  out  of  the  educa- 
tional department.  The  two  departments  are  entirely  distinct.  This 
enables  the  Principal  to  give  his  whole  time  to  the  education  of  the 
pupils.  And  it  enables  the  Superintendent  to  give  his  whole  time  to 
the  material  business,  and  things  which  belong  to  the  institution. 
The  two  things  in  mv  judgment  are  as  the  poles  are  apart.  Now  I 
shall  accept  the  conclusion  of  my  friend  that,  as  we  are  eminently 
successful  in  the  management  of  our  institution,  we  have,  by  the 
blessing  of  God,  that  divine  grace  which  enables  us  to  do  our  work 
in  that  way.    [Applause.  I 

Dr.  Gallaudet:  The  other  day,  when  Mr.  Brooks  was  telling  us 
about  the  management  of  the  New  York  institution,  he  entered  a 
saving  clause,  in  my  judgment.  In  speaking  of  this  arrangement, 
and  how  well  it  worked,  he  said,  "or  the  head  of  the  domestic  depart- 
ment might  be  subordinate  to  and  governed  by  the  head  of  the  insti- 
tution."   There  we  have  our  idea. 

During  the  last  few  months  I  have  looked  over  papers  relating  to 
the  very  early  history  of  the  oldest  institution  in  this  country;  and 
if  I  could  relate  to  you  what  I  have  there  found,  proving  what  a  bane 


232         PROCEEDINGS  OP  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

it  is  to  have  two  independent  heads  in  an  institution,  you  would  be 
surer  than  ever  of  the  existence  of  that  special  Providence  which  lias 
enabled  the  New  York  institution  to  go  on  under  such  a  state  of 
things.  [Laughter.]  In  my  reading  and  my  experience  I  am  satis- 
fied of  nothing  more  absolutely  than  I  am  of  the  fact  that  in  regard 
to  the  management  of  an  institution  like  those  that  are  organized  as 
deaf-mute  schools  in  this  country,  the  old  saying  of  "where  two  ride 
the  same  horse,  one  must  ride  forwards,"  holds  good.  There  should  be, 
in  my  judgment,  as  a  rule— although  there  may  be  these  most  benign 
exceptions  once  in  a  thousand  years — on?e  head  to  an  institution; 
and  where  that  head,  presiding  over  the  school  operations  as  well  as 
over  the  other  operations  of  the  institution,  has  the  hearty  cooperation 
and  assistance  of  an  able  man  who  will  assume  the  charge  of  the 
domestic  department,  a  second  head  of  the  institution  in  all  of  its 
management,  then  I  think,  Mr.  President,  we  may  say  we  have  an 
ideal  management  of  the  institution.  But  other  than  that,  as  a 
Director,  as  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  or  in  any  capacity  where  I 
should  give  my  vote  or  my  voice  in  determining  the  character  of  the 
management  of  an  institution,  I  should  certainly  never  dare  to  run 
the  risk  of  the  lightning  striking  twice  upon  this  planet  as  it  has 
struck  in  New  York  City.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  in  the  question  box  is:  "How 
much  attention  should  be  given  to  physical  culture  in  our  institu- 
tions?"   This  is  referred  to  Mr.  Chickering. 

Mr.  J.  W.  Chickering,  of  Washington:  The  same  time  I  spoke  of 
as  used  in  Washington;  an  hour  a  day  in  four  days  in  the  week.  It 
has  not  been  considered  wise  there  to  put  in  a  certain  time  every  day 
of  the  week,  as  the  whole  idea  of  the  gymnasium  was  not  to  place 
anything  irksome  upon  the  boys.  If  they  understood  that  at  a  cer- 
tain time  they  must  come  to  work  at  their  exercises,  they  would  not 
enjoy  them.  It  was  found  that  four  times  a  week,  an  hour  a  day,  or 
in  the  case  of  the  young  pupils  half  an  hour  a  day,  was  not  only  wise, 
but  necessary  by  many  of  the  boys,  as  was  shown  by  their  going  in 
after  the  month  during  which  the  regular  gymnastic  exercises  took 
place.  And  there  are  some  who  prefer  even  to  take  those  extra  two 
days.  But  I  think  that  in  the  colleges  of  the  land  where  such  exer- 
cises are  carried  on  regularly,  that  an  hour  a  day  four  days  in  the 
week  is  the  usual  limit  assigned  for  class  exercise. 

I  should  say  the  proper  time  to  take  these  exercises  is  after  eating; 
and  I  think  as  near  as  possible  after  the  mental  labors  of  the  day 
were  over,  so  as  to  allow  plenty  of  time  to  recover  from  the  effect  of 
the  exercise  before  the  evening  meal.  If  the  exercises  of  the  school 
close  at  three  o'clock,  I  say  this  exercise  should  commence  at  half- 
past  three,  if  they  have  an  hour  after;  if  they  have  not  half  an  hour 
before  their  meal,  they  should  take  this  exercise  as  soon  as  possible 
after  mental  effort. 

Mr.  Noyes:  We  have  found  it  beneficial  for  them  to  take  these 
exercises  immediately  after  their  study  hour  in  the  evening,  before 
the  pupils  retire.  We  have  but  a  single  hour  in  the  evening  after 
study,  at  eight  o'clock,  and  the  boys  have  at  least  half  an  hour  before 
retiring.  I  have  found  that  to  be  a  very  convenient  hour  for  gym- 
nastic exercises. 

Mr.  J.  W.  Chickering:  I  should  consider  that  as  an  excellent  idea, 
and  in  institutions  where  that  would  be  convenient  as  probably  the 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  233 

best  hour.    In  our  institution  the  pupils  sometimes  wish  to  use  their 
evenings  for  other  purposes,  and  are  not  able  to  take  their  time. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  question  is:  "Has  not  the  time  come 
for  ihe  Annals'  to  be  published  oftener  than  once  in  three  months? 
Could  arrangements  be  made  to  have  this  periodical  issued  each 
month  m  the  school  year?  This  would  increase  its  usefulness,  and 
at  the  same  time  increase  the  interest  in  an  exchange  of  ideas  among 
instructors."    This  is  referred  to  Prof.  E.  A.  Fay,  of  Washington 

Professor  Fay:  I  think  that  is  a  question  that  does  not  belong  to 
the  editor  of  "The  Annals,"  or  to  any  one,  but  to  the  convention 
itself. 

The  Chairman:  That  is  referred  to  the  Executive  Committee,  or 
to  the  convention  itself. 

Here  the  convention  adjourned  until  to-morrow,  July  twenty-first 
at  two  o'clock  p.  m. 


NORMAL  DEPARTMENT,  WEDNESDAY,  JULY  21,  1886. 
Morning  Session. 

The  Chairman,  Mr.  Ely,  called  the  meeting  to  order. 

Rev.  Mr.  McFarland  offered  the  prayer. 

The  Chairman:  In  the  work  of  the  oral  section  yesterday  we  were 
in  the  midst  of  a  very  interesting  discussion  when  the  hour  for  ad- 
journment came.  Therefore,  we  have  taken  up  this  oral  question 
this  morning. 

Miss  Richards  desires  me  to  say  that  she  would  like  it  if  any  per- 
sons have  any  questions  to  ask,  or  any  suggestions  to  make  in  regard 
to  what  was  presented  yesterday  in  her  paper,  or  the  remarks  that 
followed,  that  they  would  ask  them  now;  and  that  the  discussion  may 
be  carried  on  from  that  point. 

Mr.  Mathieson:  I  would  like  Miss  Richards  to  explain  how  she 
conducts  the  breathing  exercises  which  she  referred  to  yesterday. 

Miss  Richards:  I  spoke  of  giving  the  children,  when  they  first 
came  to  me,  exercises  in  breathing.  We  know  that  pupils  sometimes 
breathe  very  irregularly,  letting  the  breath  pass  through  the  nose  and 
mouth  at  the  same  time,  and  breathing  very  shortly,  frequently  in- 
haling it  slowly,  and  expelling  it  very  quickly.  I  have  each  child 
come  to  me,  and  if  it  breathes  through  the  nostrils  in  articulating,  I 
take  hold  of  the  nose  in  this  manner,  and  have  the  child  inhale  the 
breath  as  strongly  as  it  can.  Of  course,  it  cannot  inhale  it  strongly 
at  first,  and  then  have  it  exhale  it  through  the  mouth.  Of  course,  a 
child  cannot  breathe  forcibly  at  first,  but  in  doing  that,  in  closing  the 
nasal  passage  and  inhaling  the  breath,  when  the  breath  is  expelled, 
the  soft  palate  rises,  and  in  that  way  is  formed  the  habit  of  sending 
the  breath  through  the  mouth.  I  know  that  in  ordinary  breathing 
we  should  breathe  through  the  nose,  but  to  form  the  habit  of  sending 
the  tones  through  the  mouth  without  nasality,  I  give  this  exercise, 
and  I  give  it  for  three  months  regularly,  three  times  a  day;  after  that 
but  once  or  twice  a  day. 

Miss  True:  Do  you  help  the  children  to  observe  the  motions  of 
the  soft  palate  by  the  use  of  a  looking-glass? 


234         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

Miss  Richards:  Yes.  I  have  them  observe  the  movements  of  the 
palate  by  a  looking-glass,  and  also  have  the  children  look  into  each 
other's  mouths.  I  want  to  impress  it  forcibly  upon  their  minds  that 
the  soft  palate  must  be  kept  raised,  in  order  to  have  a  clear  tone  and 
to  avoid  nasality. 

Miss  True:  How  do  you  correct  audible  breathing? 

Miss  Richards:  I  do  not  know  that  I  ever  had  any  to  correct. 
How  do  you  correct  it? 

Miss  True:  I  have  not  corrected  it  yet. 

Mr.  A.  S.  Clark:  In  teaching  the  letter  "s,"  suppose  the  child 
persistently  says  "sh."    How  do  you  correct  that? 

Miss  Richards:  I  teach  it  first  to  bring  the  lips  straight  across  the 
teeth.  In  "sh"  the  lips  must  be  spouted.  If  I  give  "s"  with  the 
lips  drawn  tightly  across  the  teeth,  as  in  long  "e,"  it  will  give  a  clear 
"s."  I  will  change  the  lips  after  giving  "s"  for  a  time  to  spouting 
"sh,"  just  by  bringing  the  lips  forward  to  give  that  sound. 

Miss  True:  I  would  like  to  ask  if  you  do  not  find  some  children 
give  the  "s"  much  better  with  the  tip  of  the  tongue  resting  on  the 
upper  teeth  than  placing  the  tongue  by  the  lower  teeth? 

Miss  Richards:  I  have  never  found  it  so.  I  have  found  that  I  get 
a  better  "s"  by  placing  the  tongue  against  the  under  teeth. 

Miss  True:  I  find  very  often,  where  that  is  impossible,  that  I  can 
get  a  very  presentable  "s"  by  placing  the  tongue  just  back  of  the 
upper  teeth,  and  developing  it  from  "th." 

Miss  Richards:  Professor  Bell  gives  the  position  for  "s"  with  the 
tongue  right  back  of  the  upper  gum.  I  think  Miss  Worcester,  of 
Northampton,  tells  us  that  she  gives  "s,"  usually,  with  the  tongue 
against  the  under  teeth. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  beg  to  differ  entirely  with  Miss  Richards  upon 
the  "  sh  "  sound.  A  child  can  give  the  "  s  "  as  well  with  the  lips  in 
one  position  as  in  another.  I  have  found  that  that  makes  very  little 
difference.  The  whole  difficulty  is  in  the  position  of  the  tongue.  If 
they  allow  any  portion  of  the  tongue  to  touch  the  roof  of  the  mouth, 
and  allow  the  little  opening,  which  is  necessary  to  form  the  "s,"  just 
back  of  the  lower  or  the  upper  teeth,  I  do  not  care  which  they  do; 
because  I  find  that  children  sometimes  get  the  "s"  better  with  the 
tongue  up,  and  sometimes  down.  Nevertheless,  I  do  not  compel  the 
child  to  put  the  tongue  up  to  say  "s."  If  I  find  the  child  can  say  "s" 
perfectly  with  the  tongue  down,  is  not  that  sufficient?  Therefore,  I 
let  the  child  say  "  s"  in  the  way  it  can  get  it  most  perfectly.  When 
they  give  the  sound  of  "sh"  for  "s,"  it  is  because  they  do  not  curve 
the  end  of  the  tongue  up  and  permit  the  breath  to  pass  through  the 
opening  in  the  center.  The  moment  that  the  middle  of  the  tongue,  is 
raised  too  high  it  throws  the  end  of  the  tongue  down  and  the  sound 
of  "sh"  is  formed.    [Showing.] 

Miss  Richards:  I  noticed  when  Mr.  Elmendorf  was  giving  that 
sound,  that  he  brought  his  lips  into  action,  and  gave  the  spouting  of 
the  lips  very  forcibly. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  But  you  did  not  get  the  "sh"  sound. 

Miss  Richards:  I  know  that  the  position  of  the  lips  is  changed 
and  also  the  tongue. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  do  not  say  that  the  position  of  the  lips  is  not 
changed  in  the  "s"  and  "sh"  sound,  but  I  hold  that  the  "sh"  sound 
does  not  come  from  the  lips. 

Mr.  Porter:  I  would  suggest  that,  as  mouths  are  not  all  shaped 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  235 

alike,  that  the  "s,"  in  some  mouths  may  be  made  better  in  one  way, 
and  in  other  mouths  in  another  way.  It  can  be  made  in  both  ways, 
and  the  shape  of  the  arch  of  the  hard  palate  is  very  different  in  dif- 
ferent mouths,  in  some  mouths  it  being  nearly  flat.  And  the  shape 
of  the  teeth  is  different,  as  well  as  the  size.  All  of  those  things  mate 
a  difference,  I  should  think,  in  regard  to  the  manner  of  forming  the 
**Sw"  I  think  it  is  well  known  that  ordinary  speaking  persons  make 
it  in  different  ways;  some  with  the  tongue  high  up  on  the  palate,  and 
others  with  the  tongue  below  the  lower  teeth.  I  should  think  that 
the  different  forms  of  mouths  should  be  taken  into  consideration. 

Miss  True:  The  position  of  the  tongue  in"sh"  being  concealed, 
how  do  you  give  the  child  an  idea  of  the  position? 

Miss  Richards:  I  have  never  had  to  give  a  child  an  idea  of  the 
position  of  the  tongue.  I  give  them  the  "s,"  placing  their  hand  be- 
fore my  mouth  while  I  make  the  sound.  Before  doing  this  I  have 
given  them  a  looking-glass,  and  taught  them  to  hold  their  tongues 
down.  I  use  the  manipulator  very  little;  I  give  these  drills  with  the 
mirror,  just  to  enable  the  child  to  get  control  over  the  tongue;  and 
then,  by  holding  the  tongue  down  and  letting  the  breath  pass  through 
the  teeth,  I  get  the  sound  of  "s."  If  they  can  do  that  the  other  way, 
and  without  any  extra  drilling,  I  take  it  and  am  perfectly  willing  to. 
Then,  if  I  can  get  the  sound  of  "sh"  in  the  same  way,  I  get  it;  and  if 
I  cannot,  I  wait  until  I  can  get  it.  I  do  not  direct  their  attention  to 
the  position  of  the  tongue  with  "sh,"  because  it  is  so  concealed  that 
you  can  hardly  show  its  position.  But  I  will  say  that  I  have  seldom 
had  trouble  with  "sh." 

Miss  True:  I  always  do.  I  very  often  have  them  give  the  long 
sound  of  "e,"  which  raises  the  top  of  the  tongue;  and  then,  by  plac- 
ing a  string  across  the  tongue,  asking  them  to  give  "s,"  lifting  the  top 
of  the  tongue  and  also  elongating  the  center  of  the  tongue— with  a 
little  practice  I  get  a  very  good  "s." 

Miss  Richards:  In  what  way  do  you  have  trouble  with  "sh?" 

Miss  True:  It  is  more  apt  to  be  "s." 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  have  tried  both  of  these  ways;  but  sometimes 
even  these  will  fail  with  "s."  Another  way  to  get  it  every  time  is,  as 
I  have  learned  from  experience  with  a  child  I  have  taught  in  our 
school  for  three  years,  to  have  the  pupil  put  the  tongue  right  between 
the  teeth,  and  then  draw  it  straight  back  up  against  the  teeth,  and 
taking  an  ordinary  toothpick,  put  it  in  between  the  teeth,  and  then 
the  child  brings  the  tongue  up;  and  you  can  get  a  perfect  "s"  in  that 
way  every  time.  They  cannot  help  making  the  "  s  "  perfect.  I  object 
to  any  mechanical  means  whatever,  as  a  rule;  but  it  is  necessary  in 
this  case,  holding  the  tongue  in  the  center,  and  it  gives  the  "s"  per- 
fectly. The  child  will  feel  a  peculiar  tickling  sensation  at  the  end  of 
the  tongue.  The  child  I  first  tried  this  with  has  been  in  school  seven 
years,  and  she  now  gives  the  "s"  perfectly.  Put  the  tongue  between 
the  teeth  first,  and  then  put  the  toothpick  right  between  the  teeth, 
and  tell  them  to  put  their  tongue  up  in  the  position  for  "t."  They 
get  their  tongue  up,  and  then  they  make  the  "s." 

Miss  True:  I  do  it  very  often  by  having  them  give  the  h  non- 
vocally,  and  bringing  the  tongue  up,  keeping  the  breath  going  all  the 
time. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  As  this  seems  to  be  one  of  the  mistakes  ot  our 
deaf-mutes,  and  there  are  a  number  here  that  are  not  so  very  well 
acquainted  with  mistakes  and  how  to  correct  them,  I  will  state  that 


236  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

the  most  common  mistake  is  on  our  vowel  sound  of  "a,"  which  is  the 
compound  sound  of  "ah"  and  "e."  The  vanishing  "e"  is  very  diffi- 
cult for  deaf-mutes,  not  only  to  get  but  to  remember.  I  never  yet  have 
heard  a  deaf  mute  give  that  vanishing  "e"  properly.  They  can  do  it 
if  you  call  their  attention  to  it.  Take  the  word  "lady,"  and  they  say 
"  lahdy,"  and  "  pah  "  for  "  pie."  That  is  a  very  common  mistake,  and 
the  children's  attention  should  be  called  to  the  fact  that  it  is  "pie," 
and  "nice,"  and  so  forth.  I  have  heard  that  mistake  with  a  great 
number  of  children;  it  is  one  of  the  commonest  mistakes,  and  cannot 
be  corrected  too  soon. 

Another  mistake  is  vocalizing  consonants  that  should  not  be  vocal- 
ized.    This  is  a  common  mistake  of  deaf-mute  articulation. 

"  Greenberger's  Word  Method  "  overcomes  that  to  a  great  extent.  I 
have  heard  better  word  speaking  in  the  last  three  years  in  our  school 
than  ever  before.  I  do  not  advocate  that  word  method;  I  am  rather 
undecided  upon  the  subject;  but  it  certainly  does  result  in  overcom- 
ing these  compound  sounds,  vocalizing  consonants  which  ought  not 
to  be  vocalized.  In  correcting  that  I  should  simply  impress  upon  the 
child  that  the  "pi"  must  be  formed  against  the  back  of  the  mouth; 
that  the  mouth  must  be  in  the  position  to  pronounce  the  "1"  the 
moment  it  has  pronounced  the  "p."  The  position  for  the  "1"  must 
come  almost  exactly  at  the  same  instant  the  "p"  is  formed.  I  show 
him  that  I  do  not  say  "pulay,"  but  that  it  is  "play."  And  the  child 
soon  understands  that  there  is  no  vocalization.  I  always  use  words 
which  come  right  in  front  of  the  mouth  to  show  these  things  at  first, 
and  in  that  way  the  child  overcomes  that  difficulty  to  a  great  extent. 
I  have  some  pupils  in  the  class  that  very  rarely  make  that  mistake; 
and  if  they  do  they  are  very  much  ashamed  of  themselves.  They 
allow  their  organs  to  fall  back  to  their  natural  position  before  they 
form  the  next  consonant. 

Yesterday  Miss  Richards  spoke  of  writing  the  word  upon  the  slate, 
so  that  they  could  have  a  written  picture  of  all  their  words.  I  differ 
with  her  there,  because  I  prefer  to  have  the  picture  on  my  lips — to 
have  them  know  the  picture  of  all  the  words  that  they  know  upon 
my  lips,  not  in  writing  or  in  spelling,  because  that  simply  increases 
their  lip  reading  to  a  marvelous  extent.  If  they  have  the  writing 
upon  the  slate  they  will  take  some  from  the  lips,  but  they  prefer  to 
have  a  lasting  picture,  and  they  will  try  to  think  of  it  as  it  is  written; 
whereas  if  they  do  not  have  them  written  they  must  think  of  it  from 
the  lips,  and  it  makes  their  lip  reading  very  much  quicker  and  more 
rapid.  I  hold  that  that  is  the  reason  I  can  speak  to  my  children 
exactly  as  I  am  speaking  to  you;  and  upon  all  occasions  I  do  so.  I 
have  had  visitors  come  to  my  class  who  say  that  I  talk  to  them  exactly 
*as  I  do  to  the  children.  I  consider  it  a  very  high  compliment  to  me, 
and  I  consider  it  a  high  compliment  to  the  children  that  they  are 
able  to  read  the  lips  in  that  way.  And  I  hold  it  is  simply  because 
they  have  nothing  to  fall  back  upon,  as  the  words  that  they  learn  are 
not  written.  To  teach  the  word  "  accident,"  for  instance:  I  will  go 
around  the  class  listening,  never  looking  at  the  children,  because  I 
might  read  their  lips  and  they  might  deceive  me.  I  listen  to  see  how 
it  sounds.  Sometimes  I  send  them  across  the  room  and  let  them 
speak.  After  they  have  that  word,  do  I  write  it  on  the  slate  to  show 
them  how  it  is  spelled  ?  Not  at  all.  They  would  get  the  word  picture 
on  the  slate.  But  if  I  do  not  do  that  they  get  the  word  picture  on  my 
lips  when  I  speak  it.    I  do  not  approve  of  writing  at  all. 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  237 

Some  lady  has  asked  me  since  I  have  been  here,  "Suppose  you  can- 
not get  a  sound,  will  you  keep  right  at  it?"  No,  not  at  all.  If  I  try 
the  child  with  a  sound  or  word,  and  the  child  at  the  moment  has  the 
slightest  fatigue,  I  drop  it  entirely  and  go  to  something  else,  because 
it  is  simply  a  disastrous  thing  to  tire  a  child  with  anything,  because 
that  will  be  the  end  of  them  for  a  long  time.  I  drop  the  attempt  to 
get  that  sound  entirely,  and  make  no  mention  of  it  for  a  day  or  two, 
and  bring  it  up  again  casually,  and  very  often  the  thing  I  have  been 
striving  for  and  almost  given  up  comes  with  the  asking.  Do  not 
think  you  are  going  to  fail  if  you  cannot  get  something  upon  your 
first  or  second  trial.  Drop  it  and  go  on  with  something  else,  and 
afterwards  come  back  to  it  again. 

Mr.  Walker:  A  deaf-mute  present  suggests  to  me  that  the  most 
difficulty  she  has  ever  experienced  in  articulation  is  the  combination 
"ch,"or  "tsb." 

Miss  Black:  I  do  not  know  that  I  ever  had  very  much  trouble  with 
"ch."  Pupils  can  give  that  explosive  by  placing  the  tongue  in  the 
right  position  and  expelling  the  breath  on  the  back  of  the  hand.  I 
have  had  more  trouble  with  the  "  k  "  sound  than  any  other  consonant. 
I  have  a  little  pupil  in  school  who  had  a  vocabulary  of,  I  think,  fifty- 
two  words,  and  nearly  all  the  elements  and  many  of  the  combinations, 
"before  she  could  give  the  "k"  and,  of  course,  the  hard  "g"  sounds 
correctly.  One  morning  she  came  in  with  her  face  perfectly  radiant, 
and  the  first  thing  she  did  after  saying  good  morning,  was  to  sound 
the  "k."  She  repeated  "k-k-k,"  and  was  greatly  pleased  to  feel  that 
she  had  succeeded  in  getting  it. 

Miss  Fish:  A  child  will  often  get  the  sound  of  "ch"  from  imita- 
tion. If  it  does  not,  I  wait  until  it  gets  the  most  of  the  other  sounds, 
and  then  teach  it  as  "tsh." 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  have  found  that  in  doing  that  they  are  very 
apt  to  give  the  sound  "tush."  But  if  you  get  them  to  put  the  tongue 
back  further,  and  still  save  the  "t,"  they  cannot  help  giving  it  cor- 
rectly. 

Mr.  Walker:  Would  not  they  be  more  likely  to  give  the  sound  of 
"sh"  than  "ch"  when  the  tongue  is  put  back  in  the  center? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  No,  sir;  because  I  say  the  "t,"  and  they  can  get 
the  "sh"  sound  and  the  "t"  separate,  and  then  I  put  them  together. 

Miss  Richards:  I  would  like  to  speak  of  the  difficulties  of  com- 
bining "pi"  and  "tl"  that  Mr.  Elmendorf  spoke  of.  I  have  had 
trouble  with  pupils,  but  not  recently,  because  I  give  these  vocal 
gvmnastics  for  a  long  time  before  the  children  begin  to  speak.  I 
teach  the  elements  and  then  combine  them.  Before  they  know  or 
have  any  idea  of  what  they  are  doing,  I  take  a  looking-glass  and  give 
to  each  of  them  a  looking-glass,  and  we  go  through  these  exercises, 
and  in  pronouncing  the  sound  "pr,"  for  instance,  I  tell  them  to  put 
their  tongue  against  the  upper  gum  and  keep  it  there,  and  then  to 
say  "  pr,"  "  pr,"  "  pr,"  not  removing  the  tongue  at  all.  And  they  never 
know  that  they  can  mistake.  They  never  know  that  they  can  say 
"per"  at  all,  and  I  teach  "tl"  in  the  same  way.  The  "t"  is  made 
with  the  tongue  broad,  and  I  tell  them  to  just  narrow  the  tongue 


I  have  now,  I  think  never  have  made  a  mistake  in  giving  it '  par. 
I  cannot  remember  one.     I  just  have  them  glide  from  one  sound  to 


238         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

the  other,  and  that  continuation  in  that  way  they  get  simply,  easily, 
and  naturally.  ' 

Mr.  Walker:  Then  you  teach  those  elements  along  with  other 
elements? 

Miss  Richards:  Yes,  sir;  the  combinations  "sk,"  "sm,"  and  every 
combination  that  I  can  think  of,  I  teach  before  giving  it  in  a  word. 

Miss  Ellen  Barton:  I  think  the  position  of  the  consonants  should 
be  taken  before  the  voice  is  developed  at  all. 

Miss  Richards:  Yes,  I  think  so.  For  instance,  take  the  sound 
"  pi."  The  tongue  should  be  closed  against  the  upper  teeth  before  any 
sound  or  voice  is  given. 

Mr.  Porter:  Can  you  not  direct  them  to  put  the  tongue  in  the 
position  for  "1"  before  they  utter  the  "p." 

Miss  Richards:  I  do  that  always. 

Mr.  Mathieson:  I  would  like  to  ask  whether  a  knowledge  of  the 
sign  language,  and  a  knowledge  of  the  manual  alphabet  would  not  be 
of  great  benefit  in  the  articulation  work  ? 

Miss  Richards:  I  think  a  knowledge  of  the  sign  language  and 
articulation  would  harm  no  one,  if  he  did  not  use  them.  You  can 
know  the  signs  without  using  them. 

Mr.  Mathieson:  And  in  your  work  when  you  know  a  sign,  do  you 
hesitate  to  give  it,  in  order  to  get  at  the  result  ? 

Miss  Richards:  I  think  that,  knowing  the  signs,  you  can  under- 
stand children  and  their  wants  very  much  quicker.  And  very  often, 
if  a  child  forgets  the  word,  for  instance,  if  it  has  a  whole  sentence 
excepting  one  word,  and  cannot  get  that,  if  I  can  give  the  child  a  sign 
to  make  him  think  of  that  word,  I  give  it. 

Mr.  Mathieson:  That  is  the  whole  thing.  I  am  glad  we  are  so 
agreed.  I  thought  when  Mr.  Elmendorf  mentioned  this  morning 
that  in  teaching  the  word  "accident"  to  his  pupils,  he  did  not  write 
the  word  on  the  board,  how  could  he  explain  it,  except  with  the  lips? 
The  thought  struck  me  how  would  the  child  know  what  "  accident " 
meant  if  the  boy  knows  nothing  about  signs  ?  If  we  could  explain  in 
signs  what  "accident"  meant,  that  boy  would  have  a  clearer  concep- 
tion.   I  would  like  Mr.  Elmendorf  to  explain  that  a  little  more  fully. 

Mr.  Elmendorf  :  Signs  are  not  at  all  necessary  for  that  explana- 
tion. I  say  to  the  child,  "  Did  you  ever  see  a  horse-car  run  off  a  track 
and  hurt  somebody?"  or,  "Did  you  ever  see  a  horse  run  away  and 
hurt  somebody?"  The  child  might  say  yes,  and  I  say  that  would  be 
an  accident.  I  say  that  to  them  just  as  I  talk  it  to  you,  and  they  un- 
derstand every  word  of  it;  and  they  will  write  it  in  their  journals  the 
next  day. 

Mr.  Walker:  How  long  will  that  child  have  to  be  in  school  ? 
.  Mr.  Elmendorf:  About  five  years.     "Accident"  is  not  one  of  the 
first  words  taught,  although  I  should  teach  it  if  necessary. 

Miss  Fish:  I  will  ask  Miss  Richards  how  she  teaches  the  combina- 
tions of  "r;"  how  she  teaches  "dr,"  or  "tr."  I  have  found  more 
trouble  with  those  combinations  than  with  any  others. 

Miss  Richards:  I  will  ask  Miss  Barton  to  answer  that  question. 

Miss  Ellen  Barton:  With  the  "  tr,"  I  should  in  most  cases  induce 
the  children,  if  possible,  to  leave  the  voice  out  entirely.  As  "t"  and 
"r"  the  voice  would  come  in  on  the  following  consonant.  There  are 
so  many  difficulties  that  I  hardly  know  to  what  difficulties  Miss  Fish 
alludes. 

Miss  Fish:  The  combination  of  "d"and"r." 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  239 

Miss  Richards:  If  a  child  gives  a  good  "tr,"  I  do  not  trouble  my- 
self  about  the  "  dr."  They  will  get  that  after  a  time.  If  it  gets  a 
good  "d"  it  will  afterwards  get  a  good  "dr." 

The  Chairman:  We  will  now  go  to  the  subject  of  "lip  reading" 
Miss  Fish,  I  think,  is  ready  to  give  a  brief  statement  of  how  she  con- 
ducts the  exercises. 

Miss  Fish:  I  consider  the  subject  of  lip  reading  very  important, 
and  I  teach  it  sometimes  ahead  of  articulation.  I  intend  that  a  child 
shall  read  words  from  the  lips  before  it  can  speak  well.  In  teaching 
I  have  many  different  devices.  One  plan  I  tried  last  year  success- 
fully, was  to  have  each  child  take  its  slate,  and  I  would  give  a  list  of 
independent  words,  that  had  no  connection  with  each  other.  I  found 
that  in  that  way  they  improved  very  much,  and  that  it  was  of  very 
great  help  to  them.  Then  I  went  on  reading  "do,"  "is,"  "it,"  and, 
perhaps,  "strawberry,"  "Ely,"  etc.,  and  they  would  get,  perhaps,  one 
hundred  words  in  half  an  hour  in  that  way.  That  was  one  exercise 
I  had  in  lip  reading. 

Miss  Richards:  Do  you  have  your  pupils  write  the  elements  before 
they  begin  writing  words?     ' 

Miss  Fish:  Yes,  they  take  all  the  elements  from  my  lips. 

Miss  Richards:  Do  you  combine  the  elements  before  reading  the 
words? 

Miss  Fish:'  Yes,  they  take  parts  of  words  and  syllables  from  my 
lips. 

Miss  Richards:  And  then,  after  that,  do  you  give  them  short 
words,  and  then  longer  and  more  difficult  words? 

Miss  Fish:  Yes;  although  I  often  find  that  longer  words  are  more 
easily  taken  from  the  lips  than  the  shorter  words. 

Miss  Black:  I  do  not  understand  why  lip  reading  and  articulation 
are  classed  as  two  subjects.  When  we  say  articulation  we  include  lip 
reading;  we  mean  to  cover  the  whole  ground.  The  two  are  so  closely 
connected  that  it  seems  to  me  we  have  little  occasion  to  speak  of  them 
separately.  The  congenitally  deaf  cannot  learn  to  articulate  without 
lip  reading. 

Dr.  Gillett:  If  that  is  true,  why  is  it  that  some  persons  articulate 
quite  well  who  do  not  read  lips  well. 

Miss  Black:  I  think  this  is  seldom  true  of  the  congenitally  or 
totally  deaf.  Nearly  all  of  those  deaf  people  who  talk  well  and  do  not 
read  lips  well  became  deaf  after  they  had  learned  to  talk,  or  are  not 
totally  deaf.  We  have  some  good  lip  readers  who  are  not  good  articu- 
lators. But  the  congenitally  and  totally  deaf  are  obliged  to  learn  lip 
reading  in  the  first  place.  They  are  obliged  to  learn  articulation  by 
sight;  they  cannot  get  it  from  hearing.  It  is  true  that  there  are  some 
exercises  in  school,  that  are  called  lip  reading  exercises,  and  we  have 
others  called  articulation  exercises,  but  the  two  are  usually  carried 
right  along  together. 

Dr.  Gillett:  I  would  like  to  ask  Miss  Sparrow's  opinion  upon  that 
subject. 

Miss  Sparrow,  of  Massachusetts:  I  think  we  should  make  a  dis- 
tinction between  articulation  and  lip  reading.  We  have  more  diffi- 
culty with  those  who  are  poor  lip  readers  than  with  others,  and  we 
find  that  we  need  special  exercises  to  develop  lip  reading. 

Miss  Black:  That  is  very  true;  we  have  some  that  have  never  for- 
gotten how  to  talk,  and  they  come  to  us  to  learn  lip  reading.  There 
are  others  that  become  very  hard  of  hearing  late  in  life,  and  learn  lip 


240         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

reading  to  assist  their  poor  hearing.  In  such  cases  we  of  course  make 
a  specialty  of  speech  reading,  or  lip  reading. 

Dr.  Gtllett:  With  congenital  mutes,  what  is  your  observation  as 
to  the  distinction  between  the  two? 

Miss  Black  :  The  congenitally,  especially  those  who  are  totally,  deaf 
make  the  best  lip  readers.  With  those  who  hear  a  little,  the  practice 
of  speech  reading  is  like  trying  to  do  two  things  at  once.  We  depend 
a  little  upon  hearing,  and  try  to  watch  the  lips  at  the  same  time.  I 
have  had  a  pupil,  a  business  man,  forty-seven  years  of  age,  who  had 
become  gradually  deaf,  and  now  is  very  deaf.  He  came  from  a  dis- 
tant western  city,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  lessons  in  lip  reading,  to 
assist  him  in  the  practice  of  his  profession  of  law.  At  the  end  of  six 
weeks  he  attended  service  on  the  Sabbath.  He  sat  quite  near  the 
pulpit,  and  he  afterwards  said  to  me  that  he  did  not  think  he  had 
lost  one  sentence  of  the  sermon.  He  said:  "I  do  not  think  I  have 
heard  more  than  about  one  third;  the  rest  I  obtained  from  lip  read- 
ing. That  was  the  benefit  of  it  to  him.  He  used  to  test  himself  by 
holding  his  head  down  so  that  he  could  not  see.  I  commenced  with 
him  by  not  using  my  voice  at  all;  talking  simply  by  the  movement 
of  the  lips,  confining  the  exercise  entirely  to  that;  just  as  we  do  in 
school  with  pupils  who  have  some  hearing,  almost  always  speaking 
in  very  low  tones  when  addressing  them.  We  do  not  care  about 
training  their  ears  so  much  just  at  this  time.  After  some  proficiency 
in  speech  reading  has  been  obtained,  it  seems  best  to  gradually  fall 
into  the  ordinary  conversational  tones;  but  I  have  had  them  tell  me 
that  it  was  much  more  difficult  to  read  the  lips  when  some  sounds  or 
words  could  be  heard. 

Mr.  I.  N.  Tait,  of  Missouri:  I  desire  to  ask  how  you  succeed  in 
teaching  congenital  and  semi-mutes?  Which  is  the  more  rapid,  and 
which  the  more  satisfactory?  I  refer  to  both  lip  reading  and  articu- 
lation. 

Miss  Black:  I  would  have  to  make  a  difference  there.  The  con- 
genitally and  totally  deaf  make  the  best  lip  readers  every  time  and 
learn  it  more  quickly,  other  things  being  equal.  Those  that  have 
once  talked  or  have  some  hearing,  be  it  ever  so  slight,  have  pleasanter 
toned  voices;  and  enunciate  more  readily,  but  often  more  carelessly. 

Dr.  Gillett:  Have  you  never  met  some  congenitally  deaf  persons 
who  spoke  well,  and  yet  did  not  read  lips  very  well? 

Miss  Black:  Yes,  sir;  I  have  met  with  a  very  few.  It  is  said  by 
many  persons  that  speech  reading  is  a  gift,  and  cannot  be  cultivated 
to  any  great  extent;  that  it  is  not  so  much  a  matter  of  cultivation,  as 
a  special  gift.  It  is  to  some  a  natural  gift,  as  many  other  accomplish- 
ments are.  Some  persons  are  naturally  much  more  minute  observers 
than  others,  but  that  does  not  prevent  the  obtaining  of  a  great  deal 
by  cultivation.  If  one  has  the  natural  gift  so  much  the  better.  If 
not,  one  can  still  obtain  a  certain  proficiency  without  it. 

A  Member:  Did  you  ever  see  a  congenitally  deaf-mute  that  could 
not  be  taught  articulation? 

Miss  Black:  No,  sir;  I  have  not.  Of  course  we  are  not  now  con- 
sidering those  that  have  defective  sight,  and  those  that  are  deficient 
in  mental  capacity. 

Mr.  Crouter:  I  would  like  to  have  Miss  Sparrow  give  an  explana- 
tion of  Miss  Worcester's  method  of  teaching  vocal  physiology,  as  I 
think  her's  is  a  very  satisfactory  method. 

Miss  Sparrow:  1  think  that  is  too  important  to  be  explained  with- 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  241 

out  preparation.  In  a  hasty  explanation  I  should  be  liable  to  make 
mistakes.  I  should  like  to  call  attention  to  a  paper  which  Miss  Wor- 
cester has  published  in  the  January  number  of  the  "Annals"  for  1885. 
In  that  paper  a  chart  is  given,  and  some  explanation  of  it,  but  not  just 
what  you  desire.  The  title  of  the  paper  is,  "How  shall  our  children 
be  taught  to  pronounce  the  written  words  of  the  English  language?" 
I  think  that  chart  and  explanation  would  be  of  great  help  to  many 
who  are  not  acquainted  with  her  teaching. 

Dr.  E.  A.  Fay:  Miss  Worcester  has  promised  to  develop  that  sub- 
ject further  in  the  "Annals." 

Miss  Richards:  I  desire  to  ask  Miss  Sparrow  what  special  drill  she 
has  to  develop  lip  reading. 

Miss  Sparrow:  We  have  at  times  such  exercises  as  these:  We  take 
a  great  variety  of  words,  or  combinations  of  words,  which  the  child 
does  not  know,  and  give  them  rapidly,  and  the  children  compete  to 
see  who  will  read  the  words  correctly  and  write  them  on  a  slate.  We 
do  not  depend  upon  the  child's  pronunciation  of  it,  as,  the  pronunci- 
ation being  imperfect,  we  are  not  sure  that  they  understand  it.  In 
reading  exercises,  I  always  take  two,  three,  and  sometimes  four  sounds 
in  contrast. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  would  ask  how  many  you  have  in  a  lip  reading 
class,  and  in  what  manner  you  give  the  whole  class  exercises;  that  is, 
when  you  are  teaching  one  child  a  difficult  word,  what  are  the  other 
pupils  doing;  do  they  take  part  in  the  exercises,  or  are  they  left  idle? 

Miss  Sparrow:  There  is  a  great  variety  of  ways  in  doing  that.  We 
have  half  an  hour  in  all  the  classes,  in  which  the  teacher  goes  to  Miss 
Worcester's  class-room,  and  work  is  done  with  Miss  Worcester  and  the 
teacher  of  the  class,  so  that  one  half  of  the  class  will  be  occupied  with 
Miss  Worcester,  and  the  other  half  with  the  regular  teacher.  Eleven 
is  the  largest  class  which  I  have  had;  but  fourteen,  I  think,  have  been 
taught  successfully;  that  is,  with  a  great  measure  of  success. 

Mr.  Walker:  That  would  give  seven  to  the  teacher  in  the  special 
drill.  The  number  that  we  prefer  is  ten  in  the  other  exercises.  In 
the  articulation  exercises  we  keep  the  children  at  work  oftentimes  in 
pronouncing  the  list  of  words  which  he  has  already  made;  pro- 
nouncing them  over  and  over  again  to  himself. 

Miss  Richards:  I  will  ask  Miss  Sparrow  if  the  teacher  gives  her 
own  lip  reading  exercises,  or  if  Miss  Worcester  during  the  special 
drill  gives  lip  reading  exercises? 

Miss  Sparkow:  Each  teacher  gives  her  own.  The  time  of  Miss 
Worcester  is  too  valuable  to  be  spent  in  lip  reading. 

Mr.  Walker:  In  giving  a  class  the  lip  reading  exercise,  suppos- 
ing one  pupil  cannot  understand  the  motion  of  your  lips,  must  you 
stop  and  pay  attention  to  that  one  pupil,  and  is  the  time  lost  upon 
the  others? 

Miss  Sparrow:  No,  sir;  we  do  not  stop  to  give  attention  to  one. 
It  is  a  rapid  exercise,  and  the  children  who  do  not  get  it  try  harder 
next  time.  It  is  not  worth  while  to  stop  for  one  child.  That  is  the 
way  I  do. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  would  like  to  state  that  every  teacher  in  our 
school  must  be  an  articulation  teacher.  From  the  first  day  a  child 
enters. the  school  until  the  day  it  leaves  it  must  be  under  the  instruc- 
tion of  an  articulation  teacher.  We  have  new  teachers  who  must  be 
trained,  and  are  under  supervision;  but  they  have  to  teach  articula- 
16d 


242  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

tion,  every  one  of  them.  Our  classes  range  from  twelve  to  seventeen, 
I  am  sorry  to  say.  Everything  in  the  school  is  done  by  lip  reading, 
and  everything  is  done  in  articulation.  The  children  stand  in  front 
of  the  teacher,  and  the  teacher  speaks  a  word,  and  if  the  children  do 
not  get  it  it  is  spoken  again.  If  any  child  does  not  get  it  I  stop  the 
drill  once  or  twice  for  that  child,  but  it  would  not  be  fair  to  the 
majority  to  stop  too  long  with  one  child.  I  stop  as  long  as  I  think  it 
is  fair  for  that  one  child — as  long  as  I  think  it  is  fair  to  the  others. 
If  the  child  does  not  get  it  then,  I  bring  it  up  at  some  other  time. 
Every  lesson  is  given  in  articulation,  even  in  the  reading  hour  in 
that  way,  and  if  there  is  any  correction  it  is  given.  Everything  is  a 
means  to  an  end,  and  that  end  is  speech  and  lip  reading. 

Miss  Ellen  Barton:  I  would  like  to  say  that  in  any  exercise 
which  is  for  lip  reading  purely  I  had  as  soon  teach  twenty-five  chil- 
dren as  five. 

Mr.  Williams:  Would  you  have  larger  classes  in  lip  reading  than 
you  would  in  articulation  ? 

Miss  Barton:  Decidedly. 

Mr.  Williams:  What  number  do  you  consider  one  teacher  can 
profitably  teach  articulation  ? 

Miss  Barton:  One  pupil. 

Mr.  Williams:  I  understand  Mr.  Elmendorf  that  articulation  and 
lip  reading  were  in  every  exercise  in  school.  But  I  would  like  to  ask 
if  he  does  not  have  a  time  when  the  special  thing  is  articulation,  or 
is  lip  reading  ? 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  There  are  several  times.  There  come  five  or  six 
times  a  day,  five  or  ten  minutes  at  a  time,  when  specially  difficult 
words  are  articulated  for  the  children.  Suppose  it  is  grammar,  or 
reading,  or  language,  or  any  other  lesson;  there  are  a  few  minutes 
taken  out  of  that  lesson  to  teach  the  difficult  words  that  have  been 
mispronounced.  And  this  is  done  all  of  the  way  through  the  school 
day,  up  to  the  highest  class.  In  history  I  will  take  five  or  ten  min- 
utes from  that  lesson  to  give  them  a  few  words  Avhich  they  do  not 
understand,  or  do  not  articulate  or  pronounce  well. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  would  be  very  glad  to  hear  how  Miss  Barton  con- 
ducts her  lip  reading  class  of  twenty-five. 

Miss  Barton:  That  would  depend  entirely  on  the  age  of  the  pupils. 
If  it  were  simple  exercises  with  young  children  I  should  have  a  great 
number  of  sentences,  words,  and  elements  written  upon  a  slate.  I 
would  have  some  one  child  find  a  sentence  and  give  it;  and  if  the 
child  upon  the  floor  failed  to  do  it,  I  would  allow  another  to  give  it 
as  quickly  as  possible,  and  so  keep  up  a  feeling  of  competition  between 
them.  In  the  older  classes  I  would  do  it  in  very  much  the  same  way, 
though  perhaps  they  might  be  reading  from  my  lips  instead  of  hunt- 
ing for  it  on  my  slate.  Working  on  the  wall  slate  one  child  works  at 
a  time;  but  the  twenty-five  are  at  work  as  much  as  the  others. 

Dr.  Peet:  I  would  like  to  ask  of  some  of  these  ladies  and  gentle- 
men, who  have  been  teaching  articulation,  whether  they  have  ever 
found  any  benefit  from  Mr.  Lee's  method  of  designating  letters,  in 
primers.  You  know  that  he  puts,  in  special  print,  silent  letters,  long 
and  short  vowels,  etc.  I  would  like  to  know  if  those  books  have  been 
used  at  all  as  reading  books  in  teaching  articulation. 

Miss  Barton:  We  have  not  used  them  as  much  as  we  intend  to  in 
the  future.     I  like  the  principle. 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark:  I  would  like  to  ask  Miss  Sparrow  if  she  would 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  243 

give  us  some  little  explanation  of  the  elementary  system.  It  is  a  sys- 
tem toward  which  I  think  I  am  tending,  and  I  am  very  much  inter- 
ested m  it.  I  would  like  a  sketch  of  the  first  few  months  of  a  child's 
instruction. 

Miss  Sparrow:  I  do  not  teach  the  youngest  class,  and  I  have  only 
had  the  practice  that  comes  in  taking  classes  from  the  youngest  up 
and  correcting  their  errors  of  speech,  of  articulation,  and  other  work.' 

The  Chairman :  The  next  subject  to  be  considered  is  history  A nd 
the  proceedings  will  be  conducted  by  Mr.  G.  B.  Goodall,  of  the  Cali- 
fornia institution. 

Mr.  Goodall  then  read  the  following  paper: 

HOW   TO   TEACH   HISTORY. 

Mr.  President,  ladies,  and  gentlemen:  When  this  convention  met 
I  had  no  expectation  of  taking  any  active  part  in  it,  but  for  reasons 
best  known  to  the  courteous  committee,  I  have  been  asked  to  strike 
the  tonic  chord  of  to-day's  topic,  and  then  let  the  more  experienced 
and  better  prepared  execute  the  symphony.  Having  had  barely  time 
to  write  down  my  own  thoughts,  I  have  not  been  able  to  fortify  my- 
self with  reference  to  authorities,  so  what  I  have  to  say  will  be  simply 
the  expression  of  my  own  ideas,  right  or  wrong.  I  must,  therefore, 
beg  you  to  be  content  with  a  few  assertions,  which  may  be  enough  to 
provoke  discussion,  but  which,  in  this  paper,  I  cannot  adequately 
support.  But  I  am  sure  there  are  several  gentlemen  present,  with 
experience  in  their  practice,  and  literature  in  their  pockets,  sufficient 
to  set  me  right  if  I  am  in  error. 

I  believe  that  history  is  a  very  important  part  of  education,  and 
that  the  idea,  entertained  by  some,  that  it  can  be  learned  at  anytime 
and  in  any  manner,  is  erroneous.  No  matter  what  the  profession  is, 
other  things  being  equal,  the  one  who  is  well  versed  in  history  will 
be  the  better  man.  Education  does  not  consist  in  learning  to  do  one 
or  two  things,  but  in  developing,  forming,  and  shaping  the  mind; 
and,  though  history  may  not  add  largely  to  our  knowledge  in  the 
direction  of  our  special  life-work,  it  stimulates  thought  and  oroadens 
our  intellectual  range  in  a  manner  that  no  other  study  can. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  most  children  hate  history,  and  as  little 
doubt  that  they  have  reason  to  hate  it,  when  we  examine  the  text- 
books and  the  manner  in  which  it  is  generally  taught.  Undoubtedly 
there  are  teachers  who  are  not  following  in  the  old  rut,  but,  having 
solved  the  problem  in  their  own  minds,  are  quietly  pursuing  better 
methods.  Think  of  Bancroft,  Knight,  Gibbon,  Hume,  Motley,  and  a 
host  of  others!  If  to  gain  a  knowledge  of  history  is  to  learn  what 
they  all  contain,  then  indeed  is  it  a  task  that  well  may  appall  a  child. 
But  children  ought  not  to  hate  history,  for  history  is  a  series  of  tales 
about  human  beings,  and  human  beings  is  the  theme  which  the  child 
likes  best.  What  child  will  not  listen  attentively  to  a  well  told  tale? 
Some  may  say  that  children  like  fiction  better  than  fact,  but  I  doubt 
it.  Tell  a  child  a  story,  and  when  you  have  done  tell  him  that  it  all 
really  happened,  and  observe  now  pleased  he  will  be  and  how  eagerly 
he  will  ask  questions  about  it.  Tell  him  another,  and,  having  done, 
tell  him  it  is  not  true,  and  note  his  disgust.  You  will  thus  see  that 
children  prefer  fact  to  fiction.  How  often  we  hear  a  child  say,  "Please 
tell  me  a  true  story! "  Make  history  as  attractive  as  a  novel  or  a  news- 
paper, and  Children  will  pursue  it  with  the  same  zest.     Since  we  have 


244         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

now  shown  that  history  is  an  important  study,  and  that  children's 
repugnance  to  it  may  be  changed,  by  judicious  methods,  to  a  love  for 
it,  we  will  next  try  to  explain  how  it  should  be  undertaken. 

It  seems  to  me  that  in  the  study  of  history  there  are  four  periods 
to  be  considered  which  correspond  to  the  four  phases  under  which 
the  subject  may  be  regarded.  We  may  think  of  history  as  the  life 
and  doings  of  a  nation,  as  biography  is  the  story  of  an  individual's 
life;  and  as  the  life  of  an  individual  is  made  up  of  a  few  important 
acts  and  crises  united  with  much  that  is  less  important,  so  the  history 
of  a  nation  is  composed  of  important  events  and  epochs  scattered 
along  the  more  uneventful  plane  of  its  life.  This  is  the  Story  view 
of  history. 

Again,  these  events  may  be  regarded  as  strategic  points,  or  joints  in 
the  skeleton  of  history,  and  arranged  in  chronological  order,  often 
have  little  connection  with  those  which  stand  beside  them,  except 
in  point  of  time.  But  as  a  frame,  or  skeleton,  is  necessary  to  every 
substantial  structure,  so  is  this  order  necessary  as  a  groundwork  of 
historical  study.    This  may  be  termed  the  Strategic  or  Skeleton  view. 

We  see  again  that  events  of  like  character  occur  at  different  times. 
Take  the  agrarian  legislation  of  Tiberius  Gracchus,  for  example.  In 
studying  history  this  seems  out  of  place.  It  is  unlike  anything  that 
stands  near  it,  before  or  after.  It  is  a  land  question,  and  as  such,  is 
as  modern  as  Home  Rule,  and  might  be  grouped  with  all  land  ques- 
tions, ancient  or  modern.  With  this  view  the  facts  of  history  may 
be  paragraphed,  as  it  were,  and  studied  in  groups.  This  may  be 
termed  the  Group  view. 

Fourthly,  a  deeper  and  more  philosophic  consideration  will  lead  to 
tracing  out  the  development  of  the  spiritual  and  social  relations  of 
human  beings  in  society.  If  there  were  no  growth  there  could  be  no 
history,  for  there  would  be  no  change,  and  history  is  only  a  record  of 
mutation.  But  there  is  a  growth  that  is  unseen,  except  in  its  effect 
upon  society.  There  is  a  development  which  cannot  be  seen  by  the 
eye;  it  is  immaterial.  If  every  material  development  of  these  United 
States  could  be  ground  to  powder  in  a  moment,  and  its  people  remain 
unharmed,  there  would  still  live  the  grand  ideas  of  liberty,  religion, 
and  economy  which  have  been  developed  during  the  past  century. 
This  may  be  called  the  Spiritual,  Social,  or  Philosophic  view. 

Thus,  you  see,  I  would  plow  this  historic  field  four  times,  and 
each  time  I  would  plow  it  for  a  single  purpose  corresponding  to  one 
of  these  four  divisions  which  I  have  given.  Naturally  we  should  have 
four  courses,  going  over  the  same  ground,  and  which  might  be  called 
Story  Course,  the  Strategic  or  Skeleton  Course,  the  Group  Course,  and 
the  Philosophic  Course.  I  do  not  mean  the  materialistic  form  of 
philosophic  history  which  is  in  vogue,  and  which  I  do  not  believe,  for 
it  seems  to  me  that  other  factors  besides  matter  and  motion  enter  this 
great  product. 

Spencer  says,  "  There  can  be  no  correct  idea  of  a  part  without  a  cor- 
rect idea  of  the  correlative  whole."  This  may  be  generally  true,  but 
we  certainly  can  learn  some  of  the  individual  facts  before  we  can 
comprehend  a  series.  I  would  proceed  from  the  individual  to  the 
general,  that  is,  I  would  study  general  history  last.  As  many  pupils 
cannot  study  more  than  the  history  of  their  own  country,  this  seems 
to  me  to  be  the  history  to  begin  with.  General  history  is  often  given 
next,  but  it  is  hard  for  the  pupil  to  follow  so  many  threads  at  once, 
and  confusion  and  discouragement  is  the  usual  result.  *  It  better  be 


OF    AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  245 

studied  after  the  imagination  and  the  memory  have  been  trained  by 
stories  and  chronology.  The  history  of  the  United  States  being 
finished,  let  that  of  England  and  perhaps  of  France  be  followed  out. 
Of  course,  details  depend  upon  the  extent  of  the  work  that  can  be 
done,  but  I  would  put  United  States,  English,  and  ancient  history 
before  general  history.  Let  us  ask  what  a  pupil  needs  most.  If  he 
has  little  time  and  cannot  do  all  that  is  desirable,  without  doubt  the 
events  of  the  past  one  hundred  years  are  the  most  important  to  him. 
So  much  as  to  the  order,  and  we  come  to  the  method  of  study. 

In  a  school,  in  connection  with  other  studies,  instruction  in  history 
may  be  begun  at  the  age  of  nine,  and  in  some  »cases  earlier.  I  say 
instruction  advisedly;  I  do  not  mean  study.  The  child  now  enters 
upon  the  story  course.  A  mother  teaches  the  stories  of  Joseph  and 
Samuel  to  the  great  interest  and  delight  of  the  child;  and  the  stories 
of  Captain  John  Smith  and  Luther  can  be  as  easily  taught.  There 
are  but  two  requisites  of  success:  the  teacher  must  himself  know  the 
story  well,  and  he  must  have  the  ability  to  tell  it  so  as  to  excite  interest. 
In  speaking  schools,  I  have  met  with  better  success  in  this  than  in 
any  other  way.  The  teacher  must  prepare  himself,  and  these  his- 
tories that  are  so  much  like  arithmetics,  will  be  of  no  use  here.  This 
course  is  largely  biographical — a  series  of  stories  about  the  important 
characters,  to  quicken  the  imagination  and  store  the  mind  with  inci- 
dents and  associations  that  will  make  a  lasting  impression  upon  it. 
There  is  no  necessity  of  place  or  order  in  learning  these  stories;  their 
arrangement  will  come  in  the  skeleton  course.  I  should  say  that  two 
years,  and,  perhaps,  more,  might  be  spent  in  this  manner.  This 
knowledge  is  gained  without  taxing  the  strength  or  wearying  the 
attention  of  the  pupil,  and  is  a  source  of  recreation  and  pleasure. 

At  eleven  or  twelve  the  pupil  can  receive  more  substantial  food. 
He  is  old  enough  now  to  understand  some  of  the  relations  of  cause 
and  effect.  He  has  had  the  story  of  the  Boston  "  tea  party,"  now  he 
can  have  the  affair  at  Bunker  Hill.  A  pamphlet  should  be  made  by 
the  teacher,  to  assist  in  recalling  what  he  has  been  taught.  Some 
dates  must  be  memorized,  and  the  order  of  events  must  be  observed. 
All  of  the  pupil's  knowledge  must  come  from  the  teacher.  It  should 
not  be  forgotten  that  three  fourths  of  the  time  spent  in  learning,  or 
trying  to  learn,  a  hard  lesson,  is  thrown  away.  The  rest  may  be  spent 
to  some  purpose,  but  the  victim  sticks  at  hard  sentences,  talks,  and 
thinks  how  his  club  will  defeat  the  Kick-hard  Club  at  the  next  game 
of  football.  The  system  here  proposed  does  not  leave  the  pupil  to  his 
own  thoughts.  It  takes  hold  of  him,  and  sets  him  at  work  in  the 
right  direction.    In  this  manner  two  or  three  years  may  be  employed. 

The  pupil,  now  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age,  may  enter  upon  the 
group  course,  and,  with  the  aid  of  various  books  of  reference,  study 
all  topics  that  belong  to  the  same  group,  stand  where  they  may  chron- 
ologically. Here  the  first  study  begins,  and  if  the  previous  work  has 
been  well  done,  this  course  will  be  most  interesting  and  profitable. 

Of  the  fourth,  or  philosophic  course,  nothing  need  be  said,  except 
that  it  should  be  pursued  in  the  same  manner  as  the  third  course, 
with  the  aid  of  books  of  reference,  each  topic  being  worked  out  sep- 
arately. 

In  all  this  work,  the  aim  should  be  to  kill  two  birds  with  one  stone. 
Of  course,  the  work  in  all  these  forms  is  to  be  written,  corrected,  and 
copied  with  the  greatest  care.     Attention  to  paragraphing,  punctua- 


246         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

tion,  and  other  matters  pertaining  to  thorough  instruction  in  English, 
will  thus  be  most  effectively  taught. 

I  believe  in  accurate  work.  One  can  endure  being  called  narrow- 
minded  because  he  insists  upon  a  comma  being  a  comma,  if  he  has 
some  object  in  view,  and  knows  clearly  what  it  is.  This  so  called 
secondary  education  has  an  all-important  effect  upon  the  higher 
education,  and  if  accuracy  is  not  learned  when  young,  it  never  will 
be  learned.  Inaccuracy  may  be  tolerated,  but  it  should  be  depre- 
cated in  the  great  affairs  of  life,  and  is  ill  suited  to  ordinary  business. 
If  words  are  to  be  written,  they  should  be  correctly  spelled;  and  if 
sentences  are  to  be  constructed,  they  should  be  properly  punctuated. 
To  this  rule  there  should  be  no  exception.  If  a  thing  is  worth  doing 
at  all,  it  is  worth  doing  well. 

Mr.  Good  all:  I  have  done  some  of  this  work  in  my  room  during 
the  past  year,  but  not  with  pupils  who  have  taken  the  courses  that  I 
have  suggested,  in  this  order.  It  is  a  miscellaneous  class.  I  propose 
to  read  to  you  one  sentence  from  six  books,  which  sentence,  expressed 
in  six  different  ways,  is  supposed  to  convey  the  same  idea.  This  will 
show  you  how  the  work  is  done.  The  writers  of  these  sentences  are, 
three  of  them,  semi-mutes,  and  three  congenital  mutes. 

Mr.  G.  0.  Fay:  What  is  the  standing  of  the  class;  how  many  years? 

Mr.  Good  all:  They  are  from  fourteen  to  eighteen  years  old,  and 
they  have  been  in  school,  some  of  them  five  years,  some  seven,  and 
some  eight.  The  subject  was  "The  Mound  Builders."  We  have  no 
text-book  which  contains  anything  about  it.  What  the  class  have 
written  was  taken  from  my  telling  them  a  story,  simply,  and  these 
were  not  written  down  on  the  day  on  which  I  gave  it.  I  told  it  to 
them  in  signs,  and  if  I  used  any  words  which  they  did  not  under- 
stand, I  explained.  Of  course,  the  whole  subject  is  written  upon,  but 
I  will  only  read  one  sentence  to  show  you  that  it  is  the  deaf-mutes' 
own  work.  I  have  not  corrected  it  so  as  to  make  first  class  English 
of  it,  by  any  means,  but  I  have  corrected  it  so  that  it  is  fairly  intel- 
ligible. 

I  will  first  read  the  sentences  of  three  congenital  mutes.  The  idea 
is  that  a  nation  lived  here  before  the  Indians  lived  here: 

"  Before  the  Indians  lived  in  the  country  which  is  now  called 
America,  a  race  of  people,  about  whom  we  know  very  little,  inhab- 
ited it." 

"A  great  many  years  ago  a  race  of  people  lived  in  this  country, 
which  is  now  called  America,  before  the  Indians,  who  were  living 
here  when  it  was  discovered  by  Columbus." 

"  Long  before  the  Indians  began  to  inhabit  the  country  of  America, 
a  race  of  people,  of  whom  we  know  very  little,  lived  here." 

"Long  before  America  was  discovered,  and  before  the  Indians 
inhabited  the  country,  there  dwelt  in  this  country  a  race  of  people." 

"A  long  time  ago,  before  this  country  which  is  called  America  was 
inhabited  by  the  Indians,  a  race  of  people  were  living  in  it." 

"Many  years  ago  there  lived  a  race  of  people  in  this  country  before 
the  Indians  inhabited  it,  and  before  America  was  discovered  by 
Columbus." 

So,  each  sentence,  containing  the  same  idea,  will  probably  be  a 
little  different  in  the  whole  twelve  who  compose  the  class. 

Dr.  Peet:  How  did  you  give  this  information?  By  spelling,  writing, 
or  by  signs? 

Mr.  Goodall:  In  all  three:  I  conveyed  it  to  them  as  best  I  could. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  247 

Mr.  Weed:  Is  that  an  ungraded  class? 

Mr.  Good  all:  It  is  not  a  strictly  graded  class;  the  class  was  graded 
by  ages  more  than  by  knowledge. 

Mr.  Weed:  Have  those  particular  sentences  been  corrected  in  any 
degree? 

Mr.  Goodall:  They  were  first  written  upon  a  slate,  or  upon  com- 
mon paper,  and  read,  and  if  there  was  any  expression  in  them  which 
would  lead  them  to  be  misunderstood,  I  corrected  them  just  enough 
to  make  them  intelligible.  I  have  not  tried  to  make  them  perfect  by 
any  means.  This  is  not  a  daily  exercise,  but  three  times  a  week,  and 
we  do  not  devote  any  other  time  to  the  study  of  history. 

Mr.  Marshall:  Do  you  use  any  text-books  in  the  advanced  divis- 
ion? 

Mr.  Goodall:  For  the  last  two  courses,  when  they  study  what  I 
have  termed  here  in  my  paper  the  grouping  form,  or  the  philosophi- 
cal form,  of  it,  I  use  all  of  the  books  I  can;  but  for  the  story  course, 
and  the  skeleton  course,  no  books.  The  teacher  furnishes  all  of  the 
information. 

Mr.  Marshall:  Do  you  aim  to  make  your  lesson  on  history  also 
a  lesson  in  language? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir;  we  try  to  kill  two  birds  with  one  stone. 

Mr.  Crouter:  Do  you  teach  all  of  your  lessons  in  this  way — in 
signs,  and  in  writing,  and  in  spelling? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Williams:  I  believe  you  said  that  in  the  first  division  you 
would  begin  with  children  eight  or  nine  years  of  age.  Did  you  mean 
deaf-mute  children  at  that  age? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Williams:  As  soon  as  they  enter  school  do  you  begin  the  his- 
torical studies? 

Mr.  Goodall:  The  children  enter  this  institution  at  the  age  of  six, 
and  they  have  been  in  school  then  about  three  years. 

Mr.  Williams:  You  would  occupy  about  three  years  with  the  first 
division,  and  about  two  or  three  with  the  second  division,  about  the 
same  length  of  time  with  the  third,  and  so  with  the  fourth.  That 
would  make  ten  or  twelve  years  of  history. 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir;  but  only  in  connection  with  other  studies, 
twice  a  week. 

Mr.  Williams:  How  would  you  manage  in  case  you  could  keep 
children  but  six  or  eight  years  in  school? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  would  begin  just  the  same,  and  let  them  study 
those  courses  as  far  as  they  could,  because  it  will  do  them  more  good 
than  it  will  to  take  an  extensive  course  which  is  mixed  up  and  which 
is  very  imperfectly  learned. 

Dr.  Peet:  I  wiil  ask  if  in  the  instruction  in  this  institution  it  is 
usual  for  the  teacher  to  take  a  class  and  to  teach  it  everything,  or 
whether  the  same  class  comes  under  several  teachers  during  the  day? 
Do  you  in  teaching  history,  for  instance,  teach  several  grades  or  classes, 
or  do  you  confine  yourself  to  one  grade? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  confine  myself  to  one  grade.  The  pupils  remain 
in  a  certain  room  or  class  until  they  are  supposed  to  have  advanced 
far  enough  to  pass  into  another  room. 

Mr.  McDermid,  of  Iowa:  I  would  ask  your  method  of  making  cor- 
rections; whether  you  correct  the  papers  or  lessons  yourself  and  have 


248         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

the  pupils  copy  them  in  their  books,  or  point  out  the  mistakes  and 
have  them  make  the  corrections? 

Mr.  Goodall:  If  a  boy  has  presented  a  page  of  what  I  have  given 
him,  I  first  pass  along  the  line  at  the  left  margin,  and  make  a  cross 
opposite  each  line  which  contains  a  mistake,  and  give  it  to  him.  He 
reads  and  corrects  it  if  possible.  I  then  see  that  there  are  some  words 
which  he  cannot  correct,  and  perhaps  I  underline  them,  or  I  tell  him 
that  such  a  sentence  contains  the  wrong  idea.  If  he  has  said  that 
Columbus  sailed  across  the  Pacific  Ocean,  I  tell  him  that  cannot  be; 
that  is  all  I  tell  him,  and  he  immediately  sits  down  and  perhaps  cor- 
rects his  mistake  at  once.  I  try  to  have  a  pupil  correct  everything  he 
possibly  can,  and  those  he  cannot  correct  I  help  him  at. 

Mr.  Metcalf:  I  would  ask  Mr.  Goodall,  in  an  institution  where 
the  course  was  limited,  to  eight  years,  how  many  years  of  that  time 
he  would  devote  to  the  study  of  history;  or  if  ne  would  devote  as 
many  years  as  he  has  indicated? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  would  teach  history  during  all  of  that  time,  from 
the  time  he  was  capable  of  taking  it,  to  the  end.  But  I  would  limit 
the  amount  of  time  given  each  week,  to  suit  my  own  purposes.  There 
need  not  be  more  than  one  lesson  a  week  if  the  studies  are  crowded. 

Mr.  White:  How  do  your  pupils  in  history  recite?  Do  you  require 
them  to  commit  the  lessons  to  memory,  and  write  them  out  in  full 
the  next  morning? 

Mr.  Goodall:  In  teaching  history  in  this  form,  the  only  way  that 
they  recite  is,  to  present  their  papers.  I  review  occasionally,  by  ask- 
ing them  some  question,  such  as  "  Tell  me  something  about  the  mound 
builders,"  and  they  will  go  and  write  out  what  they  know  about  it. 
There  is  no  time  spent  in  oral  recitations. 

Mr.  Booth:  Do  you  never  write  lessons  for  them?  Do  they  com- 
mit their  own  lessons  virtually,  by  reviewing  them  and  reading  them 
over  as  you  have  corrected  them;  or  do  you  go  through  with  them, 
and  write  them  out  complete  lessons  for  them  to  memorize? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  never  write  out  complete  lessons.  Sometimes,  if 
the  subject  is  a  little  difficult,  and  they  find  difficulty  in  expressing 
it,  I  give  them  one,  or  perhaps  two  or  three  different  ways  of  doing 
it;  then  I  erase  it,  and  have  them  express  it  in  several  ways.  And 
perhaps  they  come  up  with  a  way  which  is  entirely  different  from 
what  I  have  given  them. 

Mr.  J.  A.  McClure,  of  Nebraska:  What  do  you  say  for  having  it 
for  an  evening  study. 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  would  not  give  this  lesson  for  an  evening  study, 
because  it  would  not  be  well  done.  I  prefer  to  have  pupils  write  it 
in  the  class-room  before  me. 

Mr.  Booth  :  In  what  way  do  you  give  language  lessons  correctly,  if 
not  in  history? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  do  correct  the  language  of  the  lessons  in  history. 
As  I  have  an  advanced  class,  I  am  not  really  teaching  language  by 
itself.  I  am  only  using  the  history  as  a  means  of  advancing  them  in 
their  language. 

Mr.  Tait:  Do  you  ever  find  it  profitable  to  have  lessons  recited 
topically;  that  is,  to  give  a  lesson  to-day,  and  require  the  pupils  to- 
morrow to  come  up  and  state  the  topic  of  the  lesson,  as  nearly  as  the 
signs  will  admit? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Sometimes,  after  a  month's  study  I  have  called  up 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  249 

the  pupils  and  asked  them  to  give  me  such  and  such  topics,  and  they 
have  given  them  before  the  class. 

Mr.  Tait:  Do  you  find  that  that  gives  them  a  very  comprehensive 
view? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir. 

Mr.  Tait:  Do  you  ever  have  your  pupils  recite  wholly  by  means 
of  the  manual  alphabet,  and  without  any  writing? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  have  done  so;  some  lessons. 

Mr.  Tait:  If  a  pupil  answers  your  question  correctly,  and  another 
one  says  he  knows  a  different  answer  to  it,  and  he  supplies  an  answer 
in  almost  the  same  language,  do  you  give  the  second  pupil  credit  for 
an  original  answer? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  do,  and  I  find  it  an  excellent  drill. 

Mr.  Tait:  Do  you  find  that,  when  a  class  is  a  little  inattentive,  to 
call  upon  the  whole  class  for  an  answer,  word  for  word,  is  a  profitable 
exercise,  and  secures  better  attention  than  any  other? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  have  not  practiced  that,  but  I  always  have  some 
means  of  getting  the  attention  of  my  pupils,  if  possible.  I  would  say 
here  that  I  disbelieve  in  class  teaching.  There  is  but  one  way  to 
teach,  and  that  is  one  teacher  to  one  pupil,  and  the  nearer  1  can  bring 
my  class  work  to  that  individual  work,  I  believe  the  better  work  I 
can  do.  Dr.  Franklin  said,  "  One  boy  is  a  boy,  two  boys  half  a  boy, 
and  three  boys  no  boy  at  all." 

Dr.  Latham:  I  understand  you  commence  this  course  at  an  early 
period,  say  two  or  three  years. 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir. 

Dr.  Latham:  What  knowledge  of  geography  have  they  at  that 
time?    If  you  speak  of  America  what  do  they  know  of  it? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  do  not  care  about  their  knowing  when  or  where 
this  story  occurred.  They  commence  their  geography  in  the  second 
course,  which  I  call  the  skeleton  course. 

Dr.  Latham:  But  you  are  teaching  this  story  before  they  have  a 
knowledge  of  geography,  without  which  the  story  is  of  no  advantage. 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  exclude  that.  The  first  course  of  two  or  three 
years  I  regard  as  simply  a  course  to  put  into  their  minds  a  few  facts 
independent  of  geography. 

Dr.  Latham:  I  do  not  believe  in  that.  I  think  they  ought  to  know 
geography  first,  and  they  ought  not  to  take  up  the  study  of  history 
until  they  have  a  complete  knowledge  of  geography,  or  sufficient  for 
the  history  of  the  country  which  they  are  studying.  For  instance, 
what  use  is  there  in  studying  the  history  of  the  United  States  if  they 
know  nothing  of  the  geography  of  the  United  States  ? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Most  children  who  learn  the  stories  of  the  Bible  on 
their  mother's  knee  know  nothing  of  the  land  in  which  those  things 
occurred. 

Dr.  Latham:  It  has  been  the  custom  for  forty  years  or  more  to 
teach  geography  before  history,  it  being  considered  that  a  pretty  fair 
knowledge  of  geography  is  necessary  to  the  proper  study  of  history. 
I  know  that  some  teachers  write  out  sketches  according  to  your 
description,  and  tell  stories.  But  as  a  matter  of  history  I  think  they 
have  no  real  value  at  all,  until  they  can  locate  the  events  and  the 
people  who  are  concerned  in  history.  Therefore  I  think  that  the 
study  of  history  should  not  be  undertaken  before  the  fifth  or  sixth 
year,  and  that  antecedent  to  that  they  should  have  a  complete  knowl- 
edge of  geography. 


250  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

Mr.  Goodall:  That  knowledge,  it  seems  to  me,  will  be  in  its  proper 
place  in  the  second  course  I  suggest,  in  which  I  begin  to  place  dates 
and  places,  and  so  arrange  my  whole  skeleton.  Then  I  begin  to 
clothe  it  with  those  stories  which  they  had  learned  long  before.  I 
put  them  then  in  their  proper  place. 

A  Member:  What  lessons  do  you  give  your  pupils  in  language? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  am  obliged  to  give  them  some  lessons  to  commit 
to  memory,  but  I  do  not  believe  that  it  is  right.  I  believe  that  the 
physiological  method  of  teaching  is  almost  wholly  overlooked.  To 
commit  a  page  to  memory  is  the  hardest  work  that  I  can  do.  Many 
teachers  give  the  pupil  a  lesson  to  be  committed  to  memory,  at  night, 
when  the  pupil  is  less  able  to  do  it  than  in  any  part  of  the  day.  I 
never  give  a  pupil  a  lesson  to  commit  to  memory  at  night,  if  I  can 
avoid  it. 

Mr.  McDermid:  I  would  like  to  ask,  in  the  use  of  text-books,  what 
methods  you  use  in  explaining  a  new  lesson? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  do  not  use  text-books  in  a  class-room.  I  would 
send  them  to  the  library  to  find  the  facts,  after  giving  them  a  hint  of 
where  they  would  find  them.  I  would  let  them  find  them  themselves, 
and  write  out  what  they  get  on  paper,  and  present  it  to  me.  They 
have  an  exercise  in  English,  and  in  history,  and  I  would  correct  in 
that  way.  They  have  then  reached  a  point  where  they  can  begin  to 
help  themselves.  This  is  study.  All  that  has  been  before  has  been 
given  by  the  teacher;  it  is  not  study,  it  is  instruction. 

Mr.  Williams:  How  do  you  accustom  them  to  the  use  of  text- 
books? 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  tell  them  that,  for  instance,  the  battle  of  Bunker 
Hill  is  described  in  certain  books,  and  I  let  them  go  and  read  about 
it. 

Mr.  Williams:  In  what  period  of  your  course  is  that?  In  the 
skeleton? 

Mr.  Goodall:  No,  sir;  I  would  have  that  in  the  second  course.  I 
do  not  use  text-books  until  they  have  studied  from  four  to  six  years, 
and  have  been  in  school  eight  or  nine  years.  Everything  that  they 
do  in  history  is  written  out,  like  English  composition.  And  I  make 
them  correct  it  themselves,  if  possible,  and  then  copy  it  carefully  into 
their  books,  like  a  composition. 

Mr.  Williams:  Do  you  find  that  deaf-mutes  are  at  that  age  able  to 
get  any  help  or  instruction  from  the  text-books,  when  you  get  to  that 
point,  to  go  to  the  library  and  select  the  books  for  themselves,  after 
you  have  given  them  an  indication  as  to  what  the  books  are,  to  go  to 
those  books,  and  hunt  up  the  subjects  that  you  wish  them  to  look  up? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir;  I  find  so  in  every  case;  that  boys  thirteen 
or  fourteen  years  old  can  do  that.  He  may  do  it  imperfectly,  at  first, 
and  give  you  a  very  poor  exercise  several  times,  but  you  will  find  that 
he  will  be  able  to  do  it  very  shortly,  and  you  will  be  surprised  to  see 
how  well  he  will  hunt  up  and  develop  a  subject  for  himself,  after  two 
or  three  months.  And  that  I  consider  is  one  of  the  great  things  to  be 
taught,  how  to  get  things  fro;n  books. 

Mr.  Williams:  I  think  that  is  the  most  important  thing  you  can 
teach;  for  if  they  are  going  to  improve  afterwards,  it  must  be  through 
books.  But  the  question,  in  my  mind,  was  whether  it  was  not  neces- 
sary to  use  books  more  in  the  class-room,  to  teach  them  how  to  use 
them  there,  in  order  that  they  should  get  that  knowledge  and  be  able 
to  use  books  freely  after  they  get  through  school. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  251 

Dr.  Peet:  Mr.  Williams  loses  sight  of  the  fact  that  these,  after  all, 
are  quite  young.  The  children  here  begin  at  the  age  of  six,  and  when 
they  have  been  here  eight  years,  they  are  fourteen  years  old — younger 
than  most  of  the  children  at  our  institutions  at  that  time.  And  per- 
haps, in  the  life  of  a  deaf-mute,  fourteen  years  would  be  about  as 
young  as  you  would  expect  them  to  use  books  freely. 

Mr.  Williams:  Yes,  sir;  fully  as  young.  But  the  question  was, 
how  they  could  jump  right  into  the  books  at  once,  without  help. 

Mr.  Booth:  Up  to  this  point,  until  they  use  text-books,  ana  until 
they  are  put  into  their  hands,  do  you  observe,  in  giving  them  lessons, 
the  chronological  order  of  events,  in  any  way? 

Mr.  Goodall:  In  the  first,  the  story  course,  I  would  tell  them  the 
story  of  John  Smith,  and  that  it  happened  in  the  early  years  of  the 
history  of  this  country.  I  would  tell  them  how  General  Putnam  rode 
down  the  stone  steps,  and  that  that  occurred  much  later.  And,  as 
Mr.  Latham  suggests,  I  might  tell  them  something  about  where  it 
occurred;  but  I  would  not  insist  upon  it.  The  object  now  is  not  that. 
But  in  the  second  course,  I  would  give,  as  I  say,  certain  dates  here 
and  there,  and  begin  to  clothe  my  skeleton  with  the  stories  which  I 
had  given  them,  and  to  locate  them. 

Mr.  Booth:  As  to  dates,  do  you  not  find  that  your  pupils  learn 
dates  very  readily,  and  yet  show  evidences  at  times  that  they  do  not 
understand  what  dates  mean?  That  is,  the  occurrence  of  events  rel- 
ative to  one  another  in  time?  That  they  will  get  George  Washington 
before  John  Smith,  and  Abraham  Lincoln  before  John  Adams?  That 
they  will  show  that  they  do  not  know  that  one  event  is  past  or  future, 
as  relative  to  another? 

Mr.  Goodall:  Yes,  sir.  But  I  often  have  some  means  of  showing 
the  relation  of  those  things.  What  you  say  is  true,  of  course.  We 
shall  meet  with  all  these  difficulties.  But  a  date  here  and  there  is 
necessary. 

Mrs.  Marwedel,  of  San  Francisco:  I  am  sometimes  asked  how  we 
impress  our  children  with  the  facts  of  history,  in  the  kindergarten. 
For  instance,  taking  the  people  who  lived  in  this  country  before  we 
came  here,  we  show  them  a  picture  of  the  Indians,  show  them  the 
tools  they  use,  and  give  them  a  description  of  their  past  and  present 
life.  Then  the  children  draw.  We  have  had  children  six  years  of 
age  who  have  drawn  all  of  the  implements  and  weapons  used  by  the 
Indians.  Then  we  make  them  out  of  mud  or  adobe,  and  we  build 
them  of  little  sticks,  just  imitating  the  Indians.  Then,  finally,  we 
use  the  center  table,  and  we  form  out  of  the  sand,  hills  and  rivers, 
and  give  them  an  idea  of  the  country  in  which  those  people  live. 
That  is  the  first  start;  and  the  same  thing  is  represented  in  stories. 

Professor  Preyer,  professor  of  psychology  and  physiology  in  Ger- 
many, has  published  a  work  which  I  am  about  to  translate,  which 
gives  the  subject  wonderful  interest  to  the  mind  of  the  child,  and  the 
child  works  it  out  himself.  And  I  think  the  teachers  of  the  deaf  and 
dumb  know  the  value  of  this  by  experience,  that  what  the  child  can 
develop  by  his  own  mental  activity  is  never  forgotten. 

Dr.  Peet:  What  is  the  title  of  the  book  that  you  mention. 

Mrs.  Marwedel:  The  author  of  the  book  which  I  am  translating 
is  Prof.  W.  Preyer.  The  title  of  my  book  will  be  "  Childhood's  Poetry 
in  the  Study  of  Life  and  Forms  of  Nature."  And  with  it  will  be  con- 
nected a  drawing  book. 

Mr.  Metcalf:  I  cannot  agree  with  Mr.  Goodall  in  all  that  he  has 


252         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

said  in  regard  to  the  teaching  of  history.  1  do  not  think  you  should 
begin  the  teaching  of  history  until  the  fifth  year.  In  our  State  pupils 
are  only  admitted  at  ten  years  of  age,  and  I  think  the  first  years  of 
their  lives  should  be  given  to  the  teaching  of  language;  and  that  you 
cannot  begin  teaching  history  before  the  fifth  year,  and  then  cannot 
give  more  than  two  years  to  that  subject,  for  more  important  matters 
should  be  taken  up. 

Mr.  Goodall:  I  make  the  teaching  of  history  a  language  study  all 
of  the  time. 

Mrs.  Marwedel:  We  have  found  the  historical  pictures  published 
by  Brown  most  valuable  in  teaching  history,  and  other  subjects. 
They  are  very  interesting.  They  show  the  pictures  of  the  birds  and 
animals  of  the  different  countries,  so  that  you  see  the  wild  animal 
just  where  it  lives,  surrounded  either  by  mountains  or  water,  and 
then  the  name  of  the  country  is  marked  upon  them. 

Mr.  Marshall:  I  have  tried  various  methods  of  teaching  history, 
and  while  I  agree  with  Mr.  Goodall  in  many  respects  in  regard  to  his 
manner  of  teaching,  I  agree  with  him  entirely  in  the  early  stages  of 
his  teaching — that  is,  by  telling  stories,  by  eliciting  the  attention  of 
the  young  pupils,  and  by  having  them  try  to  write  out  in  their  own 
words  the  facts  given.  But  as  the  class  advances  in  history  I  think 
it  is  well  to  have  well  prepared  text-books  to  assist  in  the  teaching. 
I  am  very  careful  in  my  selection  of  text-books.  I  do  not  depend 
upon  the  same  text-book  entirely.  I  give  lessons  from  signs  and 
from  the  board.  And  I  do  think  it  is  much  better  for  the  advanced 
classes  in  history  to  have  some  text-book  where  the  facts  of  the  lesson 
can  be  presented  succinctly,  and  found  easily.  If  you  send  a  class  to 
the  library  to  find  certain  facts  which  are  trifling  in  themselves,  but 
essential  for  the  instruction  of  the  class,  you  lose  time,  and  the  pupils 
become  absolutely  discouraged.  But  with  a  text-book  they  would 
search  out  these  facts  and  present  them  to  you.  You  would  then 
look  over  the  lessons  and  correct  them  where  there  are  errors;  or  the 
pupil  may  correct  them  himself.  In  that  way  there  is  information 
imparted  in  history,  and  also  instruction  in  language.  The  pupils 
are  learning  in  two  directions.  I  cannot  see  why  this  objection  to 
text-books  is  insisted  upon.  I  have  used  text-books  with  a  great  deal 
of  success. 

In  regard  to  the  time  children  should  begin  the  study  of  history, 
I  think  a  great  deal  as  Dr.  Latham  does,  that  it  is  better  for  children 
to  be  well  grounded  in  geography  before  they  take  up  the  study  of 
history  proper.  We  generally  take  up  history  in  the  latter  years  of 
the  course,  say  the  fifth  year.  We  teach  them  geography  from  almost 
the  very  beginning;  and  at  about  the  fifth  year  our  classes  begin  the 
study  of  history — generally  the  geography  of  home  at  the  first.  And, 
in  that  way,  we  think  we  give  them  very  good  information  for  the 
time  they  are  in  school  upon  the  general  subject  of  history. 

Mr.  A.  S.  Clark,  of  Connecticut:  I  do  not  know  that  I  have  any- 
thing to  say  of  special  interest,  but  I  can  give  my  own  experience. 
And  depending  upon  that,  I  must  say  that  I  differ  entirely  from  Mr. 
Goodall  in  the  method  I  think  history  should  be  taught.  As  to  the 
importance  of  history,  we  sometimes  see  that  disputed.  I  have  seen 
within  the  past  year,  in  some  of  our  deaf-mute  papers,  the  question 
asked,  "  Why  should  we  teach  history?"  I  am  surprised  that  such  a 
question  should  be  asked.  I  think  it  one  of  the  things  we  are  called 
upon  to  do — to  instruct  our  children  in  things  that  have  been  done. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  253 

As  to  when  the  study  of  history  should  be  taken  up,  in  our  insti- 
tution I  think  I  may  say  we  are  about  ready  for  it  at  the  beginning 
of  the  fifth  year.  Of  course  that  will  vary.  A  certain  class,  especially 
bright,  may  be  ready  at  the  beginning  of  the  fourth,  and  another 
class  not  until  the  beginning  of  the  sixth  year;  but  the  iifth  year  is 
about  when  we  place  it. 

It  presupposes  that  during  the  preceding  four  years  of  the  child's 
school  life  he  has  been  over,  substantially,  all  of  the  forms  of  language 
so  that  he  has  a  great  many  ideas;  and  that  he  can  express  those  ideas 
in  good,  fair  language.  Now,  what  shall  we  do  with  him?  Shall  we 
build  a  wall  about  him  and  place  him  in  a  well,  as  it  were,  by  keep- 
ing him  confined  to  the  school  limits  of  the  institution;  or  shall  ire 
make  all  that  he  has  done  a  ladder  or  stepping  stone  to  a  vantage 
point  from  which  he  can  see  and  get  his  horizon  enlarged.  I  think 
it  is  our  duty  to  our  pupils  to  do  this.  I  think  it  is  our  duty  to 
instruct  our  children  in  the  idea  that  not  I,  or  my  teacher,  or  this 
institution  is  the  center  of  everything;  but  that  there  are  things  out- 
side of  this  teacher,  or  this  institution;  and  that  this  is  but  a  fraction 
of  the  great  world.  And  how  shall  we  do  this?  By  confining  him 
to  the  things  about  him?  No.  But  by  introducing  him  to  the  things 
that  have  transpired  in  the  world.  I  say  that  the  study  of  history  is 
necessary,  in  order  that  the  child's  horizon  may  be  enlarged;  in  order 
that  he  may  be  a  good  citizen. 

The  study  of  history  is  a  help  in  the  study  of  language,  and  in 
the  enlargement  of  the  child's  vocabulary.  The  child  must  some- 
times deal  with  books  and  with  papers  if  he  is  to  be  a  part  of  this 
living  world.  How  shall  we  prepare  him  for  this?  Shall  we  give 
him  the  simple  language  which  he  understands  and  which  the  teacher 
knows  he  understands,  until  his  course  is  done,  and  then  send  him 
adrift  into  the  world?  No.  We  must,  under  our  profession,  start  him 
in  that  line  of  work  which  will  fit  him  for  taking  hold  of  the  books 
and  papers  from  which  all  his  life  he  shall  get  the  information  which 
he  needs.  The  safest  way  is  for  the  teacher  to  take  the  child  under 
his  care  and  lead  him  gently  and  carefully  in  this  path.  Difficulties 
rise  of  course.  It  is  very  easy  for  the  teacher  in  the  study  of  history, 
in  taking  a  class  as  we  do  in  our  institution  that  perhaps  has  been 
taught  three  or  four  years  by  some  other  teacher,  under  careful 
training  in  language;  it  is 'easy  for  a  careless  teacher  to  spoil  that 
child's  language  entirely.  There  is  no  need  of  it.  If  the  child's 
language  goes  to  pieces  it  is  generally  the  teacher's  fault. 

How  shall  this  be  done?  How  shall  we  so  introduce  our  children 
to  the  study  of  history  that  it  shall  be  pleasant  and  profitable  to  them? 
The  Principal  brings  into  the  school-room  every  year  a  set  of  new 
books.  Every  eye  is  delighted.  A  new  book!  It  remains  with  the 
teacher  to  decide  whether  the  first  two  or  three  mornings  in  that  book 
shall  utterly  discourage  the  child;  or  whether  it  shall  be  succeeding 
steps,  each  one  more  delightful  and  pleasant  than  the  one  before  it. 
The  study  of  history  is  not  dry,  nor  dull,  nor  uninteresting.  It  may 
be  filled  with  life  and  pleasure.  I  say  so  because  I  know  it.  How.'' 
I  will  take  the  liberty  of  giving  you,  briefly,  the  way  in  which  history 
has  been  taught  in  our  institution.  I  lay  no  claim  to  originality  m 
regard  to  it;  because  a  large  part  of  it  is  what  I  myself  have  learned 
from  those  who  went  before  me.  Some  of  it  I  have  worked  out  tor 
myself.  mi  .    „ 

A  new  book  is  placed  in  the  child's  hands.    The  teacher,  before  giv- 


254  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

ing  the  lesson,  reads  such  parts  of  the  book  as  he  thinks  will  be  a 
suitable  lesson  for  one  evening.  Be  careful  that  the  lesson  is  short 
enough.  Do  not  make  it  too  long.  Read  it  carefully.  The  teacher 
sees  words,  expressions,  and  phrases  that  he  knows  the  children  are 
not  familiar  with;  what  shall  he  do  about  those?  Select  such  words 
and  write  them  out  on  the  board  where  the  children  can  see  them. 
Place  by  them  the  sign  for  the  part  of  speech  to  which  they  belong, 
and  place  on  the  same  line  the  synonym  for  that  word.  Having  done 
that,  for  the  sake  of  accuracy  let  the  class  copy  these  words  on  paper, 
or  on  a  little  book  prepared  beforehand,  perhaps.  Then  assign  to 
them,  say  half  a  page  or  less.  Let  the  pupil  know  that  that  is  to  be 
mastered.  What  do  I  mean  by  mastered?  I  do  not  mean  memorize 
the  language,  although  it  may  be  memorized;  but  by  mastering  it  I 
mean  obtaining  possession  of  the  ideas  that  are  in  there,  so  that  the 
next  morning  when  the  class  comes  before  me,  and  I  choose  to  call  up 
a  single  pupil,  and  he  faces  me,  the  class  looking  on,  and  I  very  care- 
fully select  a  point  and  ask  him  in  signs  about  that,  he  understands 
the  signs  and  knows  what  I  mean,  and  can  respond  by  signs.  I  know 
whether  he  knows  it  or  not.  I  must  make  allowance  for  the  child's 
capacity,  of  course;  we  must  work  patiently  and  carefully;  and  by 
doing  this  day  by  day  we  find  we  are  getting  a  grasp  of  the  book.  In 
a  short  time  new  words  will  recur  and  other  words  will  come,  and  the 
child's  vocabulary  is  being  enlarged,  and  his  knowledge  of  phrases  is 
being  enlarged;  but  most  of  all,  he  is  getting  a  knowledge  of  how  to 
get  information  for  himself  from  books.  I  would  not  resort  to  a  prac- 
tice that  I  think  is  sometimes  resorted  to  before  the  lesson  is  given — 
opening  the  book  and  calling  the  attention  of  the  class  to  it,  and  giv- 
ing the  ideas  that  are  there.  "No,  the  ideas  are  in  the  book;  take 
them  out  for  yourselves."  I  demand  that  every  child  get  for  himself 
the  ideas  that  are  in  the  lesson;  and  if  he  does  not,  I  want  to  know 
the  reason.  I  find  no  difficulty  in  teaching  the  lessons  in  that  way. 
The  lessons  are  learned  uniformly  and  perfectly  according  to  the 
ability  of  each  special  child.    There  is  no  failure  about  it. 

In  connection  with  this  the  child  recites  by  signs,  and  it  is  a  very 
proper  and  profitable  exercise  for  the  teacher  to  write  out  himself  a 
synopsis,  in  simple  language,  not  book  language,  but  in  the  simple 
language  which  the  pupils  would  naturaUy  use  themselves  were  they 
familiar  with  those  ideas.  Write  it  out  in  that  way  and  let  them  read 
your  version  of  it,  and  perhaps  some  time  during  the  day  have  them 
put  it  into  a  synopsis;  all  the  ideas  that  they  have  had  in  the  lesson. 
I  do  not  see  why  this  should  be  hard.  I  have  not  found  it  so.  I  find 
constant  delight  and  success  in  my  class. 

I  would  say  that  since  February  I  have  varied  this  somewhat.  I 
have  found  that  it  was  not  necessary  to  question  the  class  by  signs,  to 
see  whether  they  understood  it  or  not.  I  found  that  they  did,  that 
they  had  so  mastered  the  book  that  they  could  give  the  ideas  that 
were  in  it.  So  I  said  now  we  will  make  this  lesson  a  special  language, 
instead  of  a  sign  lesson.  So  every  morning  I  wrote  out,  not  in  their 
presence,  but  so  that  they  could  not  see  me,  a  set  of  questions,  cover- 
ing from  one  and  a  half  to  two  pages  of  the  lesson,  which  was  United 
States  history.  There  were  about  forty  questions.  They  did  not  see 
the  questions  with  their  books  open.  When  the  time  came  the  books 
were  closed.  The  questions  were  presented  to  them  and  they  were 
expected  to  answer  those  questions  embodying  the  whole  of  the  les- 
son; every  thought  and  every  idea  expressed  in  the  lesson  that  was 


*<>>      OP  THR        "^\ 

ftjirXYBKSITlJ 

OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  %         255 

meant  to  be  drawn  out  there.    I  found  that  a  very  successful  < 

We  found  that  in  the  course  of  fifty  or  sixty  pages  we  had  some  one 

thousand  six  hundred  questions.    The  class  became  very  familiar 

with  the  lesson,  quite  as  familiar  as  with  signs  and  enlarged  their 

vocabulary. 

A  Member:  Do  you  have  the  class  submit  those  replies  to  you? 

Mr.  Clark:  It  is  very  necessary  that  every  child  should  have  his 
paper  carefully  corrected.  I  have  here  a  sample,  but  not  the  best 
sample  of  that  sort  of  work,  which  you  can  examine.  They  cannot 
answer  those  questions  by  just  taking  out  a  part  of  the  sentence,  but 
they  must  form  sentences  for  themselves  in  their  answers.  I  ask  a 
question  and  the  answer  must  be  given,  not  yes  or  no,  but  it  must  be 
given  as  it  should  be  given. 

The  history  that  the  child  will  naturally  take  up  first  will  be  a  his- 
tory of  his  own  country.  He  wants  to  learn  about  the  things  thai 
have  transpired  in  his  own  land.  He  wants  to  learn  what  the  differ- 
ent political  parties  mean,  because  he  is  going  to  be  one  of  those  citi- 
zens and  a,  part  of  this  great  country.  He  wants  to  be  an  intelligent 
man.  And  our  duty  to  the  child  rests  just  here.  We  are  to  prepare 
him,  to  arm  him  at  all  points.  And  I  claim  that  we  cannot  better  do 
this  than  by  the  study  of  history.  The  study  of  the  American  his- 
tory that  I  use  naturally  covers  about  two  years;  that  is  the  fifth  and 
sixth  years  of  the  pupil's  course  in  the  institution.  The  seventh  year 
we  generally  take  up  English  history.  Of  course  a  child  has  not 
become  accustomed  to  books  by  the  fifth  year.  We  need  to  test  every 
word  and  every  idea.  The  teacher  must  not  be  in  a  hurry — must  be 
slow  and  thorough.  If  the  class  can  go  through  American  history 
thoroughly  in  one  year,  there  is  no  objection,  but  I.  have  never  had  a 
class  who  could.  I  am  willing  to  spend  two  years  in  it.  They  have 
used  Lossing's  Primary  History,  which  is  the  best  that  we  have  yet 
found.  Then  by  the  seventh  year  he  is  ready  for  English  history; 
and  the  eighth  year,  which  is  frequently  the  last,  he  has  the  history 
of  the  world  so  called,  and  also  in  connection  with  that  a  physical 
geography,  or  something  which  is  akin  to  it.  And  we  think  by  that 
time  he  is  pretty  well  equipped,  and  we  find  it  to  be  so  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  for  life's  work. 

One  thing  I  will  mention,  that  we  review  very  carefully  by  sub- 
jects, by  topics,  and  by  names.  I,  myself,  in  connection  with  all  the 
history  I  have  ever  taught,  have  written  an  account,  for  the  pupils,  of 
every  character  mentioned,  and  of  every  event  I  have  located  the 
time.  I  insist  upon  their  having  some  idea  as  to  whether  it  occurred 
before  the  flood  or  yesterday,  and  I  would  not  teach  any  fact  without 
locating  it  somewhere  at  some  time. 

I  find  one  profitable  exercise  to  be  this:  I  call  upon  the  pupils  to 
take  their  slates  and  stand  up,  and  I  give  them  some  topic  that  we 
have  had  a  few  days  before,  assigning  to  each  one  a  different  subject, 
and  request  them  to  write  what  they  have  learned.  It  is  a  very  effi- 
cient exercise.  When  they  have  finished  I  let  each  pupil  examine 
what  the  one  next  to  him  has  written,  and  to  correct  the  mistakes,  if 
any  occur.  This  makes  them  very  careful,  and  any  pupil  who  has 
any  pride  will  learn  to  do  his  very  best  to  avoid  such  mistakes.  It 
helps  to  guard  against  carelessness  in  language,  for  they  feel  that  the 
time  has  come  when  they  must  stand  before  their  peers,  and  show 
whether  or  not  they  know  what  they  have  been  trying  to  learn. 

A  Member:  How  many  pupils  are  you  required  to  teach? 


256  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

Mr.  Fay:  I  have  had  fifteen  in  my  class  during  the  past  year. 

A  Member:  Do  you  allow  the  children  to  criticise  and  make 
remarks  about  the  lessons? 

Professor  Fay:  I  allow  the  pupils  full  opportunity  to  ask  me  any 
questions  they  choose,  but  they  must  ask  them  of  me  directly.  I 
allow  no  criticism  among  themselves.  When  they  have  a  recitation 
on  hand  that  is  the  first  business.  I  criticise  the  lessons  myself  rather 
than  let  the  pupils  do  it,  unless  I  have  an  exceptionally  bright  pupil 
that  I  may  appeal  to;  once  in  awhile  I  let  him  or  her  correct  them. 
I  think  that  is  a  better  practice. 

Dr.  Latham:  I  have  used  practically  the  same  system  that  Profes- 
sor Fay  has  spoken  of  in  the  past  year,  and,  I  think,  with  great  suc- 
cess. In  the  last  examination  the  majority  of  my  pupils  received 
over  ninety  per  cent  out  of  the  possible  one  hundred  in  the  exami- 
nation, and  with  about  that  same  system. 

Mr.  Hotchkiss,  of  Washington:  I  have  had  no  experience  in  teach- 
ing young  children,  but  I  have  had  experience  in  teaching  history. 
I  think  the  text-books  ought  not  to  be  used  with  little  children;  that 
it  requires  considerable  development  in  order  to  understand  the  his- 
tory of  the  actions  of  grown  men  and  women,  and  little  children  are 
not  equal  to  it.  I  think  that  stories  should  be  selected  from  history 
to  give  to  little  children,  making  them  also  the  means  of  improve- 
ment in  language.  But  I  do  not  like  to  call  that  history.  You  might 
as  well  call  the  humorous  stories  found  in  the  newspapers  history. 

With  regard  to  teaching  history  to  older  pupils,  I  agree  with  Dr. 
Latham,  that  a  knowledge  of  geography  ought  to  precede  the  study  of 
history.  Referring  to  my  own  experience  in  teaching  children  his- 
tory, I  ask  them  about  some  city,  and  if  they  do  not  know  about  it,  or 
where  it  is,  I  show  them  the  location  in  the  atlas  and  then  ask  them 
to  find  it  on  the  wall  map.  Often  they  cannot  do  it.  Trying  to  find 
Greece,  and  knowing  it  is  a  peninsula,  they  will  pick  out  Spain, 
because  they  have  not  learned  from  geography  where  Greece  is.  They 
may  be  able  to  find  Greece  on  a  small  map  or  atlas,  but  not  on  a  large 
wall  map.  I  have  found  out  that  in  this  way  a  great  deal  of  time  is 
wasted  in  the  teaching  of  history,  in  correcting  mistaken  ideas  in 
geography.  Miss  Thallheimer  has  written  an  excellent  history,  in 
which  she  urges  that  a  knowledge  of  geography  should  precede  that 
of  history. 

In  our  department,  in  the  institution  at  Washington,  we  have  con- 
stant recourse  to  maps  to  find  places  mentioned  in  history.  Much  of 
that  would  be  unnecessary  if  geography  was  better  taught  to  the 
pupils  before  they  came  to  the  college,  and  we  should  have  more  time 
for  the  proper  work  of  teaching  history. 

Connected  with  that  I  have  sometimes  required  the  drawing  of 
maps  connected  with  the  lesson  in  history.  Sometimes  in  examina- 
tion I  require  the  drawing  of  maps,  but  it  takes  a  great  deal  of  time. 
If  there  is  not  time  to  draw  the  whole  map  I  have  a  skeleton  or  out- 
line map;  for  instance,  historical  Asia,  Africa,  and  Europe.  I  have 
that  prepared  beforehand,  simply  giving  the  coast  lines  of  the  coun- 
try, with  a  few  of  the  rivers,  as  the  Danube  and  the  Rhine,  to  serve  as 
landmarks,  so  that  the  pupils  will  understand  thoroughly  what  it  is 
a  map  of,  and  I  give  them  to  the  students  in  their  examination,  with 
a  list  of  the  places  referred  to  in  their  history  lesson,  and  I  require  the 
students  to  place  each  of  those  cities  on  this  outline  map,  and,  in  con- 
nection with*  that,  to  write  what  events  they  know  of  in  connection 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  257 

with  those  places.  I  find  that  a  very  successful  plan  of  testing  their 
knowledge  of  geography.  In  that  way  I  also  show  how  places  are 
related  to  mountains  and  rivers. 

I  admit  it  is  very  difficult  to  teach  dates  so  that  they  will  be  remem- 
bered. My  endeavor  is  to  require  the  memorizing  of  leading  dates- 
the  dates  of  the  leading  facts  of  history  which  are  often  referred  to 
and  are  necessary  to  know;  the  date  of  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire, 
for  instance;  the  relation  of  dates  to  one  another.  One  event  occurs 
ten  or  twenty  years  before  another  event,  and  it  is  necessary  for  them 
to  know  the  one  date,  and  then  they  associate  the  others  with  that. 
Referring  to  the  revolt  of  Asiatic  Greece  against  Persia.  Who  was 
the  ruler  of  Persia  at  that  time?  Darius.  It  is  necessary  to  know 
the  connection  of  those  events  with  one  another,  and  you  cannot  do 
that  except  by  knowing  the  dates.  And  so  in  modern  history,  I  select 
some  prominent  man,  and  make  him  the  central  point  upon  which 
to  hang  other  events.  For  instance,  I  take  the  date  when  Andrew 
Jackson  died.  It  is  very  easy  to  connect  other  events  occurring  about 
that  time,  with  that.  But  whatever  method  is  emploved  it  is  neces- 
sary that  the  pupils  should  have  some  knowledge  of  dates.  They 
must  know  whether  Lincoln  lived  before  or  after  John  Adams. 

Mr.  Spruit,  of  Iowa:  I  have  not  had  much  experience  in  teach- 
ing history,  but  in  what  experience  I  have  had  the  main  difficulty 
has  been  to  get  the  child  to  understand  the  idea  contained  in  the  lan- 
guage—the idea  of  the  picture  behind  the  language;  to  get  the  child 
to  understand  the  fact  as  the  language  attempted  to  portray  it.  And 
I  have  not  found  it  advisable  to  confine  the  pupil  to  the  language  of 
the  text-book.  I  have  had  recourse  to  illustrations  of  all  kinds. 
Sometimes  I  have  illustrated  what  I  desired  on  the  sand  table.  For 
instance,  taking  the  settlement  of  Jamestown,  to  make  on  the  sand 
table  a  picture  of  Jamestown,  and  the  river,  I  would  cut  sprigs  of 
evergreen  to  represent  the  forest,  the  Indian  huts,  and  so  forth,  to  give 
an  idea  of  the  country  when  our  forefathers  first  came  there.  To  teach 
them  the  meaning  of  the  word  "settle"  I  would  show  them,  as  I  have 
said,  on  the  sand  table,  a  country  covered  with  forests,  and  show 
them  that  the  settlers  came  there  to  go  to  work;  that  in  the  first  place 
they  must  have  a  place  to  sleep,  and  they  cut  down  the  trees  to  make 
log  houses.  Then  what  is  necessary  next?  They  must  have  some- 
thing to  eat,  and  they  begin  to  till  the  soil,  and  they  must  have  room 
for  their  food  to  grow,  and  they  cut  down  the  trees  and  clear  it  off. 
Then  the  population  increases,  and  others  come,  and  they  keep  on 
clearing,  and  after  awhile  we  say  the  country  is  being  settled.  I 
represent  the  first  on  the  sand  table  so  that  they  know  what  the  idea 
is  contained  in  that  word.  And  a  pupil  who  has  in  mind  an  idea  of 
what  "settle"  means,  by  that  picture,  will  have  a  better  idea  than  if 
he  is  simply  given  that  word.  So  with  each  topic,  for  instance,  before 
the  year  1800  in  our  history  we  have  to  do  with  colonization,  with 
war,  then  with  peace,  prosperity,  commerce,  etc.  I  attempt  to  give 
each  subject  clearly,  either  by  action,  or  by  picture,  or  by  having  it 
upon  the  sand  table,  and,  if  necessary,  we  have  it  acted  out.  In  our 
school  we  have  had  illustrations  of  war,  giving  an  idea  of  the  oppos- 
ing armies  so  that  they  clearly  understood  it.  Then  we  would  show 
the  meaning  of  victory  and  defeat. 

Mr.  Williams:  In  the  study  of  history  I  think  the  teachers  should 
keep  in  mind,  all  of  the  time,  that  there  are  two  distinct  things:  first, 
17d 


258  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

the  ability  of  the  child  to  take  ideas  out  of  book  language,  and  when 
the  child  undertakes  to  reproduce  these  ideas,  that  he  should  not  be 
allowed  to  use  the  book  language,  but  that  he  should  be  obliged  to 
put  those  ideas  into  the  same  style  of  language  that  he  would  use  to 
express  his  ideas  in  regard  to  anything  that  is  taking  place.  He 
should  be  compelled  to  express  it  in  his  own  language. 

Mr.  Goodall:  That  is  exactly  what  I  do  by  my  process. 

Here  the  normal  session  adjourned  until  seven  o'clock  this  evening. 


Afternoon  Session. 

Professor  Gillett  in  the  chair  called  the  convention  to  order.  Rev. 
Dr.  McClure,  of  Nebraska,  offered  the  opening  prayer.  The  Secre- 
tary read  the  minutes  of  the  last  meeting,  which  were  approved. 

The  Chairman:  I  have  just  received  a  letter  which  came  in  the 
mail  to-day  from  the  oldest  living  teacher  of  deaf-mutes,  and  the 
oldest  Superintendent  in  America,  Mr.  W.  D.  Kerr,  of  Missouri.  He 
is  now  approaching  eighty  years  of  age,  and  is  still  in  active  service. 
The  letter  is  as  follows: 

Missouri  Institution  for  the  Education  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  ) 

Fulton,  Mo.,  July  13,  1886.  j 

To  the  President  of  the  Convention  of  the  Teachers  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  Berkeley,  California: 

Dear  Sir:  Permit  one  of  the  oldest  teachers  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  to  send  through  you 
his  greeting  to  the  fraternity  in  convention  assembled  at  Berkeley,  and  to  express  his 
unfeigned  regret  that  circumstances  beyond  his  control  have  prevented  his  attendance. 
For  about  fifty-five  years  I  have  been  an  instructor  of  the  deaf  and  dumb.  During  more 
than  half  a  century  of  experience  and  observation  I  have  witnessed  many  changes,  and 
watched  closely  the  varying  fortunes  of  our  institutions;  and  now,  in  the  evening  of  life,. 
I  feel  grateful  that  so  much  has  been  accomplished  for  the  unfortunate  class  among  whom 
much  of  my  life  has  been  spent  and  with  whom  are  my  warmest  sympathies.  Much 
remains  to  be  done.  The  world  moves,  and  I  rejoice  that  our  profession  has  not  fallen 
into  the  rut  of  anti-progress,  and  am  willing  with  patient  effort  to  try  all  and  hold  fast 
that  which  is  good.  On  one  of  the  questions  that  will  come  before  the  convention  permit 
me  to  express  my  opinion.  While  quite  a  number  of  semi-mutes  may  make  practical  use 
of  articulation,  the  beautiful  and  expressive  sign  language  will  continue  to  be  the  medium 
of  instruction  and  communication  for  the  great  mass  of  the  deaf  and  dumb.  And  yet, 
with  all  my  half  century  of  experience,  I  am  not  too  old  to  learn  nor  too  prejudiced  to 
admit  that  there  may  be  found  methods  far  superior  to  any  I  have  known  and  used,  and 
none  would  rejoice  more  than  I  to  see  it  demonstrated  that  my  opinion  is  too  hasty  to  be 
correct. 

If  what  my  friends  tell  me  is  true,  my  enforced  absence  confers  upon  my  excellent 
friend,  Dr.  Gillett,  the  rank  of  veteran  Superintendent  of  the  convention.  1  abdicate 
cheerfully  in  his  favor. 

Trusting  that  the  interchange  of  views  at  this  convention  may  result  in  great  good  to 
the  unfortunates  among  whom  we  labor, 
I  remain,  respectfully, 

W.  D.  KERR. 

The  Chairman:  The  first  paper  to  be  read  this  evening  is,  "How 
to  Conduct  a  Scientific  Examination,"  by  Theodore  Grady,  of  Cali- 
fornia. 

HOW    TO   CONDUCT   A   SCIENTIFIC   EXAMINATION. 

We  assume  that  a  fair  mode  of  ascertaining  the  results  of  academic 
work  at  stated  times  is  indispensable  to  the  well-being  and  progress 
of  any  school,  and  that  nothing  exerts  so  powerful  an  influence,  by 
way  of  stimulation  to  active  and  faithful  application,  upon  the  teacher 
and  the  pupil  alike,  as  a  fair  and  intelligent  examination.  We 
assume  that  the  more  critical  and  discriminating  the  investigation 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF  THE   DEAF.  259 

grows,  and  the  more  strictly  we  hold  the  pedagogue  and  the  student 
to  account,  the  greater  efficiency  of  the  work  becomes  apparent. 
Experience  justifies  the  conclusion  that  our  assumptions  are  not 
unfounded.  Grant  all  this,  and  it  follows  that  it  is  a  question  not 
only  of  utility,  but  of  moral  obligation.  No  one  denies  the  fact  that 
an  officer  in  charge  of  any  educational  undertaking  is  morally 
bound  to  render  a  satisfactory  and  authentic  report  of  faithful  work  in 
every  department.  That  accounting  must  be  honest  ana*  accurate. 
He  must  conscientiously  avow  that  his  charge  is  in  no  way  suffering 
from  incompetency  and  negligence  of  duty,  and  that  his  wards  are 
enjoying  their  just  share  of  official  attention.  Where  incompetency 
and  waste  rule,  means  must  be  devised  to  get  rid  of  them;  it  must 
ever  be  regarded  in  practice  a  crime  to  acquiesce  in  them,  or  to  sanc- 
tion them. 

The  term  "scientific,"  used  here  to  qualify  the  meaning  of  our  sub- 
ject, presupposes  a  certain  attitude  of  mind  in  the  examiner.  We 
cannot  lay  too  much  emphasis  upon  the  manner  in  which  an  inves- 
tigator mentally  approaches  the  object  of  his  search.  We  have  no 
reason  to  expect  delicacy  and  dexterity  of  manipulation  from  an 
awkward  and  negligent  experimentalist.  All  that  has  been  said 
about  the  necessity  of  the  "  scientific  spirit "  as  a  prerequisite  to  a  suc- 
cessful career  in  scientific  discovery  applies  with  equal  force  to  a  true 
and  impartial  survey  of  the  results  in  the  class-room.  It  will  do  us 
no  harm  if  we  wander  from  our  point  and  hunt  the  full  meaning  of 
the  expression  "scientific  spirit. '  It  may  be  defined  to  be  a  charac- 
teristic consisting  of  an  intense  love  of  truth  for  its  own  intrinsic 
worth  in  preference  to  all  things,  accompanied  by  a  desire  to  arrive 
at  certainty  and  accuracy,  and  by  an  abhorrence  of  everything  that 
tends  to  interfere  with  the  judicial  nature  of  the  mind — self-interest, 
and  bias  in  every  form.  Therefore  an  examination,  in  order  to  be 
scientific,  must  be  conducted  in  a  scientific  spirit,  and  must  be  certain 
and  accurate  in  every  part.  It  must  be  critical  and  thorough.  It 
must  be  discriminating,  even  to  a  nicety,  in  its  nature.  In  other 
words,  it  must  be  able  to  determine  the  rank  of  each  pupil  even  to  a 
decimal.  Of  course  due  allowance  must  be  made  for  every  disturb- 
ing element,  but  only  a  valid  excuse  is  accepted.  It  must  be  adapted 
to  every  stage  of  mental  growth,  and  its  motto  will  certainly  be,  fair, 
but  thorough. 

Let  us  proceed  to  the  discussion  of  an  ordinary  examination  in 
detail.  The  first  question  that  confronts  us  is:  Who  should  conduct 
it?  Everything  depends  upon  the  examiner.  He  must  be  compe- 
tent and  upright,  and  free  from  all  pettiness  of  mind.  He  must 
emphatically  be  liberally  imbued  with  the  scientific  spirit.  He  may 
be  the  Principal,  or  one  of  the  teachers,  or  an  outsider.  If  he  were 
the  Principal,  he  should  endeavor  to  make  it  a  regular  institution  of 
the  school,  and  to  allow  nothing  to  interfere  with  the  work  at  any 
price.  Were  he  a  teacher,  common  decency  would  require  that  he 
have  nothing  to  do  with  his  class  in  the  preparation  of  the  ques- 
tions and  appraising  the  credits.  Should  he  be  an  outsider,  he  ought 
to  prepare  himself  for  the  work  beforehand,  especially  as  the  nature 
of  our  education  requires  special  study.  Many  of  our  institutions  are 
situated  in  the  neighborhood  of  an  excellent  college  or  university. 
It  would  be  a  good  idea  to  get  one  of  the  professors  or  instructors 
interested  in  the  cause,  and  to  engage  him  as  our  censor.  Let  us 
anticipate  your  objection  upon  the  score  of  finance.    Why,  every  busi- 


260  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

ness  house  of  any  importance  annually  sets  aside  a  certain  fund  for 
the  purpose  of  employing  an  expert  to  verify  the  books.  The  money 
is  never  regarded  as  wasted.  Why  should  we  not  do  likewise?  We 
spend  thousands  a  year  in  the  routine  part  of  the  work,  but  we  object 
to  employing  a  pedagoging  expert.  We  flatter  ourselves  that  we  dis- 
charge our  duty  in  running  our  machinery  in  a  perfunctory  manner, 
but  we  seldom,  if  ever,  insist  on  a  scientific  summing  of  the  results 
to  see  whether  the  concern  has  been  a  losing  affair.  We  never  run 
any  business  by  sufferance  or  by  special  leave  and  favor;  why  should 
we  do  it  in  our  educational  work?  Why  do  we  invite  an  outsider  or 
outsiders  to  investigate  the  condition  of  our  schools,  and  ask  them  to 
tender  a  complete  and  scientific  accounting  of  our  educational  fruits 
by  special  leave  and  favor?  Do  you  suppose  that  their  report  can 
be  otherwise  than  cursory?  How  ridiculous  we  seem  in  our  request, 
when  we  consider  that  it  requires  from  six  to  ten  days  to  examine  a 
school  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  children,  and  a 
month  to  prepare  the  questions,  to  inspect  the  classes,  to  examine 
them,  and  to  find  the  percentage  of  each  child,  and  to  make  a  final 
report. 

When  the  number  of  children  to  be  examined  is  very  great,  say 
three  hundred  to  six  hundred,  it  requires  more  than  one  man  to  do 
the  thing.  A  committee  or  board  of  three  examiners,  each  one  of 
them  bearing  a  high  reputation  for  integrity,  is  suggested.  They  may 
divide  the  work  among  themselves,  or  may  work  jointly.  Were  they 
teachers  engaged  in  the  place,  they  should  neither  hold  dealings  with 
their  own  classes,  nor  with  those  of  their  fellow  examiners.  Let  the 
three  classes  be  examined  by  the  Principal  in  the  same  manner,  and 
with  the  same  scrupulous  care. 

Now  we  beg  leave  to  notice  the  nature  of  the  questions  and  the 
marking  system.  The  questions  should  be  fair  and  thorough,  and  dis- 
criminating enough  to  discover  the  real  merits  of  each  pupil,  and  to 
place  the  children  in  their  true  ranks.  The  number  of  questions  to 
be  propounded  must  be  regulated  by  the  grade  of  each  class.  It  may 
be  generally  stated  that  where  the  faculty  of  judgment  is  least  devel- 
oped, the  number  should  be  large,  and  where  the  power  is  most  com- 
pletely developed,  comparatively  speaking,  the  number  should  be 
very  much  limited.  For,  it  is  unfair  to  expect  kindergarten  folks  to 
judge  for  themselves  what  is  important  to  commit  to  memory  and 
what  is  not.  Therefore  we  ought  to  see  that  they  lose  fewer  credits 
when  they  fail  to  answer  a  question  than  the  children  of  advanced 
classes  do. 

The  marking  system  should  be  certain  and  accurate.  There  must 
be  no  guesswork  even  in  appraising  the  credits;  but,  on  the  contrary, 
everything  must  be  calculated  in  a  purely  mathematical  manner. 
It  would  be  a  much  wiser  act  if  we  should  adopt  a  severe  test  like 
that  in  use  at  West  Point,  and  require  a  low  passing  mark  (as  in 
vogue  at  Harvard  University,  where  the  passing  mark  is  40  per  cent), 
than  if  we  should  maintain  a  higher  standard,  and  a  loose  marking 
system.  The  questions  should  be  uniform  in  their  nature  through 
all  classes,  and  the  marking  system  should  be  made  to  work  no  injus- 
tice to  anybody.  We  should  never  endeavor  to  entertain  anything 
like  a  sham,  for  our  little  ones  will  surely  mock  us  to  scorn. 

On  the  whole,  the  examination  should  be  managed  on  pure  busi- 
ness principles,  and  nothing  should  be  taken  for  granted.  Like 
Caesar's  wife,  the  teachers  should  be  above  suspicion;  and  for  their 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP  THE   DEAF.  261 

own  protection  should  avoid  suspicious  appearances,  especially  as 
they  are  surrounded  by  a  class  of  keen  observers,  whose  powers  of 
drawing  personal  inferences  seem  to  be  abnormally  developed.  The 
unfortunate  teachers  would  be  the  only  ones  to  suffer.  Heaven  help 
the  man  whose  reputation  is  forever  under  a  cloud,  and  who  can 
never  have  an  opportunity  of  proving  his  absolute  innocence!  There- 
fore no  maudlin  sentiments  ought  to  stand  in  the  way  of  a  business- 
like examination.  We  never  feel  slighted  when  a  receipt  is  demanded 
of  us. 

We  have  expounded  the  nature  of  an  examination  as  is  in  common 
use  in  the  public  schools,  with  the  exceptions  suggested  as  specially 
suited  to  our  peculiar  work.  But  we  shall  now  proceed  to  discuss  the 
merits  or  demerits  of  that  system.  However,  we  may  repeat  that  in 
order  to  conduct  an  examination  fairly  and  justly,  we  must  have  an 
idea  of  what  the  object  of  education  is.  What  is  it?  Is  it  the  develop- 
ment of  any  single  faculty  or  an  aggregate  of  faculties.  Bear  in  mind 
that  we  have  only  to  deal  with  education  as  far  as  it  concerns  the 
intellect.  If  it  aims  at  the  cultivation  of  any  one  force  of  mind,  what 
is  it?  Is  it  the  power  to  judge  and  comprehend — the  intelligence  as 
in  contradistinction  with  any  other  single  faculty,  as  for  instance, 
memory?  Now  let  us  look  at  the  public  school  system  and  account, 
if  we  can,  for  the  general  tendency  toward  superficiality.  Do  not  we 
find  the  burden  of  proof  lie  in  the  mode  of  conducting  the  examina- 
tions? What  do  we  see?  A  vast  process  of  memorization.  We 
engage  to  find  how  much  our  children  remember,  and  congratulate 
ourselves  upon  the  result.  But  we  hold  no  official  recognization  of 
that  important  factor  of  mind,  which  we  call  intelligence.  Our  chil- 
dren enjoy  a  smattering  of  the  languages  (including  their  own  English), 
and  the  sciences;  but  they  lack  the  scientific  spirit — they  don'tobserve, 
they  don't  think,  they  don't  reason,  in  the  proper  sense  of  each  word. 
Were  they  so  situated  as  to  possess  a  vernacular  different  from  the 
one  in  vogue  at  school,  and  as  crude  as  our  sign  language,  the  evil 
effects  would  be  much  more  palpable.  If  that  is  the  condition  of  our 
public  schools  in  general,  with  their  elaborate  system  of  balances  and 
checks,  what  must  be  said  of  an  ordinary  institution  with  its  extremely 
elastic  condition,  where  everything  seems  to  be  run  in  a  dilettante  sort 
of  way?  Is  not  memory  practically  regarded  as  the  end  of  educa- 
tion ?  Do  we  not  sometimes  go  a  little  too  far  and  treat  education  and 
memory  as  synonyms?  Do  we  not  sometimes  believe  our  duty  dis- 
charged when  we  preside  at  the  mechanical  reproduction  of  a  lesson? 
Do  we  not  long  fondly  for  the  day  when  we  should  crown  our  work 
by  making  our  pupil  a  living  phonograph  of  our  words? 

How  are  we  to  discourage  or  to  avert  those  tendencies,  while  not 
underestimating  memory  as  a  disciplinary  power  ?  Let  us  recognize 
the  much  abused  faculty,  intelligence,  when  we  ascertain  the  results 
of  class  work.  How  to  do  it?  Here  is  a  suggestion.  Suppose  we 
hold  an  oral  examination,  as  it  were,  immediately  after  the  written 
one,  in  order  to  see  that  the  pupil  understands  each  question  and  its 
corresponding  answer.  Further,  let  us  prepare  a  list  of  test  questions 
from  the  text-book,  or  from  the  teacher's  memorandum,  m  order  to 
determine  his  intelligence.  In  this  respect,  since  it  concerns  the 
intelligence  solely,  the  queries  should  be  somewhat  more  difficult  than 
those  used  in  the  written  exercise,  especially  as  it  consists  of  reading 
at  sight.  Each  answer  is  to  be  graded  according  as  it  gives  a  clear, 
vague,  or  obscure  conception  of  the  meaning  of  each  passage,  as  the 


262  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

case  may  be.  The  credits  acquired  at  the  two  examinations  should 
be  kept  and  entered  separately.  An  average  of  the  two  would  give  a 
fair  estimate  of  educational  progress  made  by  the  scholar.  We  may 
go  a  step  further  and  allow  him  credit  for  the  faculty  of  expression 
according  as  the  answers  are  couched  in  good,  indifferent,  or  bad 
English,  as  the  case  may  be.  The  class  average  in  each  of  the  three 
instances  will  betray  each  teacher's  standing  for  the  past  term,  and 
the  Trustee  of  our  educational  estate  will  possess  an  authoritative 
record  of  the  condition  of  the  estate. 

However,  in  order  to  do  full  justice  to  the  work  on  hand,  one  should 
make  a  personal  inspection  of  the  classes  previous  to  the  examina- 
tion. The  object  of  this  inspection  is  to  acquire  an  insight  into  the 
method  and  plan  of  instruction  as  pursued  by  each  teacher;  and  this 
thing  should  not  be  accomplished  in  one  day.  The  purpose  of  a  per- 
fect and  complete  examination  would  be  defeated  if  we  had  neglected 
to  take  into  account  the  aim,  theory,  and  the  practical  work  of  the 
past  term.  So  let  us  supplement  the  examination  of  the  children  by 
that  of  the  teachers.  However,  this  supplementary  inquiry  does  not 
partake  of  the  nature  of  a  competitive  examination,  but  is  simply  an 
inquiry  into  the  character  of  the  work  done  in  the  past,  and  necessa- 
rily the  aims  and  theories  which  governed  that  task.  This  object 
may  be  attained  by  issuing  a  circular  to  each  teacher  some  time  in 
advance  of  the  school  examinations,  in  which  paper  as  many  ques- 
tions may  be  propounded  pertaining  to  the  nature  of  the  professional 
labor  as  may  be  proper  in  the  opinion  of  the  conductor.  The  peda- 
gogue is  supposed  to  answer  them  in  a  proper  spirit.  The  questions 
and  answers  need  only  be  very  brief. 

To  illustrate:  We  may  ask,  among  many  other  things,  wThat  amount 
of  time  is  spent  on  each  subject  of  study — time  to  be  calculated  by 
hour  per  week;  what  study  is  regarded  as  the  most  important;  what 
end  or  object  he  has  in  view,  and  so  on.  Each  question  is  intended 
to  serve  a  purpose.  Thus,  in  our  inquiry  concerning  time,  we  would 
know  whether  each  subject  required  so  much.  To  be  more  practical, 
we  propose  to  judge  a  teacher's  success,  not  by  the  general  average  of 
the  class  in  all  studies,  but  chiefly  by  the  average  of  the  section  in  the 
most  important  study — important  according  to  the  teacher's  opinion 
and  the  amount  of  time  given  it.  Therefore,  if  he  make  a  failure  of 
the  class  in  the  central  work,  his  labor  is  supposed  to  be  lost,  even  if 
his  pupils  as  a  body  gain  a  high  percentage  in  the  rest  of  the  studies, 
especially  when  that  subject  commands  an  unusual  amount  of  atten- 
tion and  time.    This  is  based  upon  the  principle  of  cause  and  effect. 

Eurther,  if  the  class  attain  a  high  standing  in  the  least  important 
study — in  the  sense  of  the  least  amount  of  pedagogical  attention — the 
head  of  the  section  is  not  to  be  credited  with  it,  as  it  may  not  be  an 
effect  of  his  work,  unless  he  is  successful  in  the  most  important  phase 
of  the  task.  In  other  words,  the  grand  total  average  of  the  class  may 
reflect  upon  the  teacher  where  there  is  no  failure,  in  the  collective 
sense,  in  the  most  important  study;  but  not  when  there  is.  A  fail- 
ure in  this  single  instance  is  a  total  failure  on  the  whole.  The  num- 
ber of  important  studies  is  not  restricted;  it  may  be  one  or  more, 
according  to  the  nature  of  work  required  of  each  class.  There  should 
be  no  such  a  thing  as  guesswork  or  luck  with  the  teachers. 

It  may  be  disputed  that  we  apparently  allow  the  teacher  very  little 
freedom.    No;  it  is  a  mistake.    They  are  as  free  as  ever — just  as  much 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   Till;    DEAF.  263 

as  we  are  free  moral  agents — but  we  endeavor  to  hold  them  strictly 
responsible  for  their  acts,  just  as  we  are  morally  for  ours. 

The  best  advantage  of  such  an  inquiry  lies  in  this:  It  gives  a  man 
of  tact  the  most  agreeable  and  the  most  efficacious  means  of  intro- 
ducing reform  into  a  class-room,  and  of  remedying  abases,  in  a  guiet 
and  unassuming  tone.  For  example,  if  we  prize  highly  the  science 
of  teaching  mutes  how  to  read,  we  need  not  invade  the  pedagogical 
'"sanctum  sanctorum"  and  order  the  introduction  in  a  dictatorial 
manner,  but  write  down  these  questions  on  your  circular  and  ask: 
What  is  being  done  to  encourage  outside  reading?  What  is  being 
done  to  teach  our  pupils  how  to  read,  and  what  to  read?  What  is 
being  done  to  enable  them  to  obtain  a  wish  to  read,  or,  finally,  to 
acquire,  through  reading,  the  art  of  thinking?  So  we  may  introduce 
any  other  questions  to  illustrate  the  progressive  ideas  of  the  day. 

Another  benefit  may  come  from  this  plan.  The  Principal  would 
command  a  clear  knowledge  of  the  workings  of  each  class-room  indi- 
vidually, and  of  the  school  collectively,  and  he  would  render  himself 
useful  in  the  highest  degree.  The  effectiveness  of  the  school  system 
would  reach  its  greatest  density. 

Let  us  anticipate  a  few  objections:  Time  should  be  no  objection; 
we  ought  to  make  time  for  the  purpose,  and  we  can  always.  An 
examination  is  always  as  indispensable  to  our  cause  as  the  routine 
part  of  the  work.  Much  has  been  said  about  the  "diabolic  horrors 
of  cramming,"  but,  in  general,  they  arise  from  a  false  conception  of 
the  mission  of  an  examination  on  the  part  of  the  scholars,  and  fre- 
quently on  that  of  the  teachers.  If  the  examiner  should  only  show 
a  clement  and  liberal  spirit  in  his  demeanor  and  mind,  and  if  the 
teachers  should  discourage  all  excitement,  the  examinations  would 
never  be  regarded  in  such  a  light. 

Finally ,  let  us  suggest  that  the  results  of  the  examination  be  rec- 
ognized as  a  part  of  the  official  records  of  each  school  by  the  Board 
of  Directors,  and  no  pains  should  be  spared  to  render  the  examina- 
tion thoroughly  scientific.  A  separate  fund,  if  necessary,  should  be 
created  for  that  purpose. 

Miss  Annie  M.  Black  here  took  the  chair. 

Miss  Black:  The  next  paper  is,  "Thoughts  from  my  School- 
room," by  Laura  C.  Sheridan,  of  the  Illinois  institute. 

THOUGHTS   FROM   MY   SCHOOL-ROOM. 

If  the  title  of  this  paper  seems  lacking  in  dignity,  considering  the 
character  of  this  assembly,  it  may  be  pardoned  by  recalling  the  criti- 
cisms sometimes  advanced  in  regard  to  our  conventions,  that  the  real 
difficulties  of  the  school-room  have  not  been  presented  so  fully  as 
questions  having  a  general  bearing  upon  the  profession  Indeed,  is 
it  saying  too  much  to  say  that  aspiring  teachers  have  felt  a  disap- 
pointment after  attending  a  convention  at  hearing  so  little  plain  talk 
upon  the  practical  questions  that  have  knotted  and  snarled  their 
school-room  work?  Our  institutions  are  so  widely  separated,  each 
one  is  so  altogether  a  world  in  itself,  the  opportunities  to  meet  and 
compare  notes  are  so  very  rare  and  brief,  that  a  writer  teels  oim- 
dence  in  presenting  difficulties,  lest  overmuch  ignorance  be  displayed 
before  those  who  have  long  since  solved  the  questions  that  puzzie. 
But  this  fear  should  not  deter  candid  expression,  as  only  open,  tree, 


264  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

frank,  kind  discussion  can  reveal  the  light  that  has  come  to  some,  to* 
the  good  of  all. 

So  we  come  before  this  convention  seeking,  questioning.  We  know 
not  the  experience  of  others,  but  for  years  we  have  had  a  growing 
feeling  of  dissatisfaction  with  the  results  obtained  in  teaching  lan- 
guage. The  sarcastic  mood  of  the  "Disgusted  Pedagogue,"  as  dis- 
played in  the  "Annals"  some  years  ago,  struck  a  deeply  sympathetic 
chord  in  our  breast,  but  we  are  not  so  ready  now  to  accept  as  inevit- 
able that  which  discourages  or  disgusts.  Indeed,  we  are  full  of  hope 
that  a  radical  change  in  our  method  of  teaching  in  the  intermediate 
and  advanced  grades  will  finally  bring  us  to  our  goal — a  class  of  grad- 
uates in  possession  of  correct  English. 

When  we  view  the  style  of  composition  prevailing  in  the  deaf-mute 
world  to-day,  we  cannot  believe,  notwithstanding  all  the  discussion 
and  experimenting  of  half  a  century,  that  the  "  natural  method  "  of 
teaching  language  has  been  so  discovered  as  to  be  applied  continu- 
ously throughout  the  course,  and  this  conviction  is  strengthened  by 
the  fact  that  the  pupils  make  so  much  greater  progress  in  language 
the  first  half  of  their  course  than  the  latter  half,  when  the  reverse 
should  be  true.  We  think  the  cause  of  this  may  have  been  failure 
to  apprehend  clearly  in  just  what  way  the  deaf  child  must  learn  lan- 
guage as  a  hearing  child  does,  and  in  just  what  way  he  cannot  possibly 
do  so.  He  has  been  given  practice  when  he  should  have  had  princi- 
ples, and  principles  when  he  should  have  had  practice.  The  hearing 
child  learns  language  without  knowing  how  he  learns  it;  he  picks  it 
up,  here  a  little  and  there  a  little,  each  occasion  for  its  use  adding  a 
mite  to  his  store.  The  deaf  child  must  learn  language  as  the  hearing 
child,  as  to  direct  association  with  the  ideas  or  circumstances  that 
require  the  expressions  used;  but,  instead  of  learning  it  uncon- 
sciously, he  must  give  attention,  effort,  application,  and  besides,  must 
suffer  from  every  mistake  of  the  teacher,  which  two  facts  sharply  rup- 
ture the  correspondence  between  the  way  hearing  and  deaf  children 
learn  language. 

God  runs  this  universe  so  methodically,  so  noiselessly,  so  unvary- 
ingly the  same,  that  the  laws  do  not  appear  upon  the  surface,  are 
never  matters  of  thought  except  to  the  student,  yet  the  slightest  vari- 
ation from  its  beaten  track  of  a  single  law  would  plunge  everything: 
into  ruin.  Although  the  hearing  child  learns  language  so  easily,  so 
unconsciously,  it  comes  to  him  under  as  rigid  a  reign  of  law  as  come 
the  comets  of  our  starry  heavens  in  their  periodical  visits:  so  must 
the  deaf  child  learn  language  under  law.  The  teacher  stands  behind 
him  as  the  creator.  She  must  fathom  all  the  laws  and  mysteries  of 
construction,  that  she  may  know  how  to  teach  language  aright,  may 
know  how  to  lead  the  pupil  in  a  right  way  of  doing  without  confusing 
him  with  a  consideration  of  the  law  of  his  doing.  That  we  have 
failed  in  so  large  a  degree  is  no  wonder,  since  the  book  of  nature  is 
the  book  of  God,  and  not  easily  read.  The  time  has  not  been  lost  if 
we  are  thoroughly  impressed  with  the  fact  that  what  God  has  easily 
imparted  to  the  hearing  we  can  never  hope  to  easily  impart  to  the 
deaf,  and  of  the  fact  that  we  will  never  learn  to  teach  language  prop- 
erly until  the  why  and  the  wherefore  of  every  exercise  has  been  map- 
ped out  carefully  in  our  minds  as  a  simple  step  following  closely 
upon  what  has  preceded  it,  and  linked  just  as  closely  with  a  step 
beyond.  The  bane  of  our  profession  has  been  hap-hazard  medley 
teaching.     We  all  have  used  simplicity,  method,  and  more  or  less  of 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  265 

common  sense  in  starting  our  pupils,  simply  because  we  would  never 
get  them  started  if  we  did  not;  but  the  practice  too  common  after  that 
has  been  tersely  expressed  by  another  in  these  words:  "We  first  bang 
away  awhile  at  a  single  form  of  expression  exclusively;  then  bang 
away  at  a  medley  of  forms— present,  past,  future,  perfect,  active,  pas- 
sive—all being  jumbled  together  and  piled  on  top  of  the  previous 
drill.  We  dump  first  one  form  and  then  another  upon  the  pupil,  in 
a  promiscuous  heap,  instead  of  taking  the  greatest  pains  from  the 
very  start  to  keep  them  separate,  and  carefully  placed,  each  upon  its 
own  special  shelf,  in  the  pupil's  mind." 

We  propose  to  treat  in  this  paper  of  four  common  errors  in  the 
practice  of  teacher  and  pupil  which  greatly  hinder  the  latter's  pro- 
gress in  language: 

1.  The  use  of  words  by  the  pupil  that  have  no  meaning  to  him. 

2.  Drill  on  words,  tenses,  or  forms  of  expression  apart  from  direct 
association  with  such  facts  and  ideas  as  lead  hearing  people  to  use 
them. 

3.  The  use  and  misuse  of  the  text-book. 

4.  Our  practice  of  assisting  pupils  in  composition,  and  using  phrases 
and  terms  of  expression  in  correcting  his  exercises  which  he  cannot 
comprehend. 

To  illustrate  the  first  point  take  the  articles  "a"  and  "  the."  " Our 
pupils  use  them  a  long  time  without  a  glimmer  of  sense  attached  to 
them.  After  awhile  we  find  that  it  is  almost  impossible  to  make  them 
bear  in  mind  that  they  have  any  signification  whatever."  The  writer 
has  never  met  a  deaf-mute  who  will  not  make  mistakes  in  using  the 
innocent  looking  but  terribly  complex  little  article.  One  who  can 
with  care  write  English  that  would  be  creditable  to  many  well  edu- 
cated hearing  persons,  and  who  can  converse  readily  and  intelligently 
upon  topics  of  a  profound  nature,  will  in  the  careless  freedom  of 
letter  writing  make  astonishing  mistakes  with  the  article.  Show  us 
the  teacher  whose  pupils  never  make  mistakes  in  the  use  of  the  article 
and  we  see  the  perfect  teacher  of  deaf-mutes,  because  the  close  think- 
ing, the  ready  perception  of  cause  and  effect  in  construction  necessary 
to  perceive  and  make  plain  the  many  distinctions  between  the  proper 
and  improper  use  of  "a"  and  "the,"  will  lead  the  teacher  to  go  to  the 
bottom  of  the  difficulties  of  construction  and  attempt  to  teach  no  word 
without  doing  it  in  such  a  manner  as  to  reveal  to  the  pupil  its  rela- 
tion to  other  words  in  the  sentence.  Inexperienced  teachers  have  no 
idea  how  difficult  it  is  to  teach  the  article  correctly.  The  writer  once 
stepped  into  the  school-room  of  a  cultured  lady,  one  who  had  had 
wide  experience  in  responsible  positions  in  hearing  schools,  but  very 
little  experience  with  deaf-mutes.  When  asked  why  she  was  permit- 
ting her  pupils  to  write  "  the  wagon  "  where  the  connection  required 
"a  wagon,"  she  looked  surprised  and  said  she  had  supposed  the  former 
way  proper  enough,  since  it  was  grammatically  correct.  "A"  means 
one,  but  not  any  particular  one,  in  distinction  from  "the,"  which 
always  means  some  particular  one;  but  the  average  deaf-mute  sup- 
poses "a"  to  mean  one  in  distinction  from  two,  or  some  other  nu- 
meral, which  meaning  it  never  has. 

After  the  first  few  months  of  school  life,  the  teacher  should  never 
correct  a  sentence  containing  the  article  without  asking  why  one  is 
used  instead  of  the  other,  and  clearly  explaining  why  when  the  pupil 
cannot  do  so.  The  pupils  will  take  it  up,  and  soon  ask  why  them- 
selves when  they  do  not  understand  the  why  in  sentences  that  they 


266  PROCEEDINGS    OP   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

see.  So  the  pupil  learns  that  we  say,  "1  saw  a  train  go  by,"  because 
we  may  mean  any  one  of  the  trains  that  go  by  every  day,  but  that 
we  say,  "I  started  for  the  train,"  because  we  had  made  previous 
arrangements  to  take  that  particular  train;  also,  that  we  say,  "I 
bought  a  dollar's  worth  of  sugar,  and  handed  a  two-dollar  bill  t,o  the 
grocer,"  because  we  necessarily  hand  the  money  to  the  person  from 
whom  we  obtain  the  sugar,  but  "A  grocer  sold  a  dollar's  worth  of 
sugar,"  because  no  particular  grocer  is  designated;  also  that  "a"  may 
be  used  throughout  in  an  example  to  speak  of  the  worth  of  a  pound 
of  raisins  because  no  particular  pound  in  the  entire  stock  in  the  grocery 
is  designated,  but  that  a  boy  buys  a  pound  of  raisins,  and  his  mother 
weighs  the  pound,  because  she  weighs  the  particular  pound  he  brought 
home;  also,  that  we  say,  "  The  key  to  the  front  door  is  lost,"  because 
that  particular  door  has  its  own  particular  key,  while  we  say,  "  You 
use  a  key  to  lock  the  door,"  because,  while  reference  is  made  to  the 
particular  door  of  the  room  in  which  the  remark  is  made,  and  which 
may  have  its  own  particular  key,  reference  is  not  now  made  to  the 
key,  but  to  the  kind  of  article  among  many  articles  that  is  needed  to 
lock  the  door. 

"A  man  had  a  new  floor  make  to  his  barn,"  but  "  Mary  spilled  ink 
on  the  floor;  "A  man  bought  a  clock,"  but  "I  looked  at  the  clock;"  "A 
boy  was  carrying  a  pitcher  but  broke  the  handle,"  and  many  other 
examples  might  be  given,  but  these  will  suffice  to  illustrate  the  great 
care  that  must  be  taken  in  teaching  the  article,  lest  we  allow  our 
pupils  to  write  what  sounds  correct  to  the  ear  in  simple  composition 
while  seriously  wrong  in  principle. 

To  avoid  the  second  error  alluded  to,  we  should  always  ask  our- 
selves the  question,  "What  are  the  circumstances  under  which  a 
hearing  child  would  express  himself  so?"  and  then  teach  the  new 
tense  or  expression  only  in  connection  with  real  or  imaginary  facts. 
Why  is  it  that  bright  pupils  of  six  years'  standing  will  be  guilty  of 
such  a  deaf-muteism  as  this,  "One  night  Mrs.  H.  walked  around  the 
room  and  her  husband  heard  her  and  thought  she  was  a  burglar," 
when  they  understand  perfectly  the  meaning  of  the  progressive  form 
of  the  past  tense,  and  supply  it  immediately  at  the  suggestion  of  the 
teacher?  It  is  because  when  the  form  was  first  taught  them  they 
were  allowed  to  write  it  in  meaningless,  detached  sentences,  such 
as,  "A  man  was  plowing  in  a  field,"  "A  girl  was  walking  in  the 
garden,"  or  else  having  been  taught  it  correctly,  as  always  closely 
connected  with  something  that  immediately  preceded  it  or  followed 
it,  they  have  not  been  habituated  to  its  use  by  being  required  to 
always^  use  it  where  its  use  was  possible.  It  is  not  enough  that  a  sen- 
tence is  grammatically  correct.  We  must  go  beyond  correct  sentence 
writing  in  our  ambition  for  our  pupils  or  they  will  ever  remain  bound 
in  deaf-muteism.  "  Can  I  possibly  lead  the  pupil  to  express  this  idea 
as  a  hearing  child  would?"  should  ever  be  the  earnest  question,  and 
a  question  asked  again  and  again,  and  brought  under  the  focus  of  the 
powers  of  the  mind  in  stern  and  rigid  search,  until  the  secrets  of  the 
laws  of  construction  reveal  themselves  and  we  see  plainly  and  make 

Elain  to  our  pupils  those  laws.  We  fail  largely  in  teaching  language 
ecause  we  do  not  think  enough  about  the  how  to  do  it.  For  every 
form  of  expression  we  use  there  was  a  way,  a  road  by  which  it  reached 
us  and  became  our  own,  and  it  is  our  business  to  search  out  that  way, 
that  law,  and  teach  the  expression  to  our  pupil  in  the  same  groove, 
for  only  so  can  he  learn  it,  since  law  is  eternal. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  267 

If  we  cannot  think  of  any  reason  to  give  a  pupil  why  an  expression 
is  written  so,  nevertheless  there  remains  a  reason,  and  in  searching  ii 
out  we  may  discover  a  principle  under  which  a  large  number  of  similar 
expressions  may  be  classified  and  made  plain  to  hi m.  Of  course  no 
one  will  suppose  us  to  be  speaking  of  the  study  of  grammar.  The 
illiterate  person  can  do  little  to  correct  confirmed  habits  of  speech  by 
the  study  of  grammar;  neither  can  the  deaf-mute  learn  language  by 
studying  the  rules  of  grammar.  He  must  learn  language  by  using 
it,  and  by  using  it  in  direct  association  with  what  requires  it,  as  we 
did.  "Ah! "  says  the  advocate  of  the  so  called  natural  method,  "that 
is  just  what  we  claim.  These  friends  who  are  all  the  time  talking 
about  method  and  philosophy  would  load  the  pupil  down  with  rules 
and  put  him  in  such  a  straight-jacket  as  is  nowhere  else  witnessed  in 
nature  in  acquiring  language."  So  in  our  practical  every  day  work 
the  natural  method  man  whispers  in  our  ear,  "  Learning  language  is 
mostly  a  'pick  up'  process.  If  a  pupil  is  anxious  to  express  an  idea, 
but  does  not  know  how,  put  it  in  language  for  him;  for  his  mind  is  in 
that  receptive  condition  to  make  him  seize  upon  it  and  remember  it." 
The  philosophical  method  man  whispers,  "  Be  careful!  By  all  means 
give  him  a  new  word  or  two  if  you  can  fit  them  into  constructions 
with  which  he  is  already  familiar;  but  as  sure  as  you  write  out  a  form 
or  idiom  that  is  new  to  him,  you  lead  the  way  to  greater  confusion  in 
his  use  of  language  in  the  future.  Drop  everything  and  teach  the 
new  construction  thoroughly,  or  withhold  it  until  you  can  do  so." 
There  is  no  quarrel  here,  but  there  is  such  a  thing  as  the  natural 
method  running  mad,  and  so  crowding  the  pupil's  memory  with  a 
mass  of  forms  that  half  the  time  he  does  not  know  which  one  he 
needs  to  use  of  the  medley  in  his  mind. 

To  teach  a  new  form  of  expression,  the  teacher  needs  to  have 
thought  out  his  subject  thoroughly,  so  as  to  be  able  to  give  reasons 
and  explanations  for  difficulties  that  may  arise.  Then  it  should  be 
taught  in  sharp  contrast  with  those  already  familiar,  ringing  changes 
being  made  upon  it  in  composition  to  see  if  the  pupil  understands 
the  teacher's  explanations  and  the  manner  in  which  this  new  expres- 
sion differs  from  others.  Step  by  step;  practice,  practice,  practice; 
is  not  this  the  way  to  learn  language?  Encourage  the  pupil  to  "  pick 
up"  all  he  can  by  reading  and  conversation;  but  he  has  a  whole  life- 
time for  that,  and  only  a  few  years  of  precious  school  life  for  drill 
in  principles.  When  he  "picks  up"  in  the  school-room  by  wrong 
practice,  he  falls  a  victim  to  the  principle  embodied  in  the  old  adage, 
"  Teach  a  horse  to  trot,  and  he  will  never  learn  to  pace." 

But,  says  one,  to  take  time  to  so  teach  all  new  forms  of  construc- 
tion arising  in  lessons  would  leave  no  time  for  anything  else.  That 
is  so;  which  is  why  we  think  a  radical  change  is  called  for  as  to  the 
character  of  the  lessons  we  assign  our  pupils;  such  a  change  as  will 
dispense  with  the  text-book,  and  make  the  language  of  lessons  so 
simple  that  everything  new  can  be  brought  out  and  developed  in  the 
recitation,  as  is  the  case  with  hearing  children.  Having  had  oppor- 
tunity to  observe  the  vastly  superior  results  obtained  in  starting 
pupils  with  the  past  tense  in  connection  with  action  writing,  journals, 
story  writing,  descriptions  of  pictures,  etc.,  without  the  use  of  a  text- 
book for  three  or  four  years,  over  the  results  obtained  in  starting  them 
with  the  present  tense  and  constant  use  of  the  text-book,  we  cannot 
but  conclude  that  the  same  principle,  carried  out  in  the  entire  course, 


268         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

is  the  only  way  to  attain  unto  our  goal — a  correct  use  of  English  on 
the  part  of  our  pupils. 

If  there  is  a  constant  outcry  against  the  text-book  for  the  hearing 
child  because  he  stumbles  over  the  hard  words,  what  shall  we  say 
about  the  text-book  for  the  deaf  child,  when  the  construction,  in 
addition  to  words,  has  to  be  laboriously  explained  by  the  teacher, 
only  to  run  out  of  his  mind  like  water  from  a  sieve,  so  far  as  practi- 
cal benefit  in  language  is  concerned.  What  folly  to  suppose  that 
there  can  be  benefit  in  memorizing  lessons  that  cannot  be  compre- 
hended by  the  unaided  effort  of  the  pupil  as  to  the  construction;  and 
until  our  pupils  can  write  correct  English  in  simple  style  where  is 
the  text-book  that  can  be  so  comprehended,  unless  prepared  espe- 
cially for  them.  If  our  condemnation  of  the  text-book  seems  im- 
moderate, let  a  burning  sense  of  the  wrong  it  does  our  pupils,  in 
consuming  so  much  of  their  precious  time  and  making  so  little  return 
for  it,  atone  somewhat  for  what  may  seem  ultraism.  Again  and  again 
graduates  of  a  few  years'  standing  have  assured  us  that  they  would 
have  preferred  omitting  several  branches  that  they  had  studied  if  the 
time  spent  on  them  could  have  been  spent  in  practical  composition. 
Is  the  lack  in  language  the  crying  need  of  the  deaf-mute  world  to-day, 
or  is  it  not?  We  put  our  ear  down  where  we  can  hear  the  fever-heat 
pulse  of  desire  and  the  burning  heart-throbs  of  sorrow  over  business 
failures  and  social  mortifications,  and  we  hear  nothing  but" Yes, yes, 
yes."  We  think  our  old  pupils,  who  have  gone  out  into  the  world, 
would  really  hate  us  if  they  thought  we  had  not  done  all  we  could  to 
give  them  a  command  of  language. 

Our  plan  is,  now,  some  language  first,  then  devotion  to  certain 
branches  of  study  considered  indispensable  to  the  dignity  of  any 
school.  Should  it  not  rather  be,  to  give  our  pupils  a  knowledge  of 
English  that  will  lead  to  its  correct  use  and  such  knowledge  of  other 
important  branches  as  can  be  conferred  in  the  process  of  teaching 
English.  If  we  could  so  reverse  matters  at  least  deaf-mutes  and  their 
friends  would  invoke  blessings  upon  our  heads. 

When  the  pupil  is  pinned  down  to  hard  facts  in  practical  life  what 
compensation  is  a  smattering  of  a  few  scientific  studies  instead  of 
power  to  use  that  language  which  is  indispensable  to  his  best  success 
and  to  his  happiness  in  social  life,  not  to  speak  of  the  unlimited 
source  of  enjoyment  he  would  have  within  himself  could  he  read 
books  and  papers  with  ease. 

Our  faith  is  that  the  intellectual  life  of  our  pupils  need  not  be  in 
the  least  cramped  by  such  devotion  to  English.  Is  it  not  the  lan- 
guage into  which  all  intellects  have  poured  their  wealth,  and  can  it 
be  acquired  by  the  deaf-mute  without  as  actively  engaging  his  intel- 
lectual powers  as  any  study  could?  We  think  not.  We  rather  think 
that  it  can  be  so  taught  as  to  bring  into  vigorous  and  harmonious 
exercise  all  the  faculties  as  present  methods  cannot. 

There  is  a  great  field  of  endeavor,  perhaps  as  yet  almost  untried,  in 
connection  with  the  lecture  and  dictation  methods.  We  learn  that 
in  a  certain  institution  philosophy  and  chemistry  are  studied  with- 
out a  text-book,  recitation  and  examination  consisting  of  the  per- 
formance of  experiments  in  the  laboratory  and  the  putting  in  writing, 
on  the  part  of  the  pupil,  of  information  which  had  been  imparted  by 
the  teacher  in  lectures.  If  any  object  that  such  a  method  places  the 
pupil  in  contact  with  no  language  superior  to  his  own  we  are  met 
with  the  fact  that  in  that  institution  the  advanced  pupils  have  such 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  269 

command  of  language  that  they  can  do  what  we  never  heard  of  them 

doing  inany  other  institution— write  respectable  compositions  on  cur- 
rent topics  of  the  day  before  visitors,  on  topics  assigned  by  the  visitors, 
without  five  minutes  warning  as  to  what  they  would  be  required  to 
write  about.  The  only  failure  witnessed  by  our  informant  during  a 
period  of  two  years  was  when  a  pupil  was  given  a  topic  on  the  money 
question. 

Do  not  medical  students  study  mostly  by  reading,  attending  lec- 
tures, and  making  copious  notes  of  the  information  imparted,  and  is 
not  this  becoming  a  favorite  method  with  the  best  educators. 

Superintendent  Jenkins,  of  the  New  Jersey  school,  has  an  admira- 
ble paper  in  the  April  "Annals"  "About  Teaching  Geography,"  which 
illustrates  how  the  kernel  may  be  extracted  from  the  text-book  by 
the  teacher,  and  the  knowledge  which  is  of  most  importance  to  the 
pupil  grasped  by  him  as  it  could  not  be  when  buried  in  the,  to  him, 
conglomerate  mass  of  the  text-book.  The  writer  has  tried  the  descrip- 
tion of  imaginary  trips  to  countries,  the  pupils  getting  their  infor- 
mation from  the  book  and  from  the  teacher,  and  although  taking  a 
prodigious  amount  of  time  in  the  correction,  the  pupils  were  eager 
for  them.  They  pronounced  them  much  harder  than  the  memory 
lesson,  proving  to  be  without  foundation  the  objection  advanced,  that 
to  dispense  with  the  text-book  makes  it  too  easy  for  the  pupil.  There 
is  no  doubt  that  it  makes  it  much  harder  for  the  teacher. 

Again,  a  memory  lesson,  the  language  of  which  requires  half  an 
hour's  explanation  in  signs,  could  not  fail  to  be  much  more  profitable 
as  the  foundation  for  a  dictation  exercise  in  natural  signs.  No  other 
exercise  exacts  from  the  pupil  such  alert  and  intense  mental  activity, 
while  it  reveals  to  the  teacher  his  own  shortcomings  in  failing  to 
make  signs  clearly,  and,  as  nothing  else  could,  that  some  of  the  lan- 
guage of  the  lesson  is  away  beyond  the  pupil,  since  he  fails  utterly  in 
his  effort  to  translate  it  from  signs  into  English.  After  such  an  exer- 
cise has  been  corrected,  the  pupil  will  inspect  the  teacher's  lesson 
with  the  greatest  eagerness  to  compare  its  language  with  his  own.  Of 
course  such  methods  as  these  are  so  tedious  and  slow  as  to  the  ground 
they  cover,  that  none  will  have  the  courage  to  use  them  of  whom 
anything  is  expected  of  the  text-book  at  examination  time,  but  the 
tortoise  pace  is  the  pace  at  which  all  must  learn  language. 

Last  but  not  least  is  the  evil  arising  from  assisting  pupils  with  their 
exercises.  In  correcting  them  we  are  constantly  using  forms  of 
expressions  that  are  uncomprehended  by  the  pupil,  and  how  often  is 
an  entire  sentence  written  out  simply  because  he  has  not  the  least 
idea  how  to  do  it.  This  common  practice,  however  necessary  appar- 
ently, can  be  vicious  and  vicious  only.  As  soon  as  it  begins,  confu- 
sion enters  the  pupil's  mind;  this  imperfect  instruction  becomes 
mixed  with  that  which  was  perfectly  imparted,  and  soon  he  knows 
nothing  thoroughly.  In  addition,  finding  that  he  is  not  expected  to 
write  correctly,  he  makes  no  great  effort  to  do  so,  and  fails  to  be  duly 
impressed  with  the  extent  of  his  own  ignorance  and  of  the  mortifica- 
tion and  inconvenience  it  will  cause  him  when  his  school  days  are 
over  and  he  has  no  teacher  at  his  elbow  to  help  him  out.  Although 
it  may  detract  somewhat  of  interest  and  enthusiasm  from  language 
exercises,  it  seems  to  us  that  no  assistance  should  be  given  the  pupil 
which  involves  anything  new  in  construction.  Any  number  of  new 
words  may  be  given  if  certain  that  they  are  the  right  ones  for  the 
right  place,  but  any  assistance  beyond  this  usually  sends  the  pupil  to 


270  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

his  seat  with  but  a  faint  glimmer  of  what  our  hasty  explanation 
meant.  When  the  pupil  learns  that  he  must,  unaided,  put  into  some 
kind  of  shape  every  idea  he  wishes  to  express,  the  very  inconvenience 
he  suffers  in  being  refused  aid  will  be  a  spur  to  greater  effort  to 
improve  opportunities  for  instruction,  while  the  teacher  will  have  a 
constant  and  eminently  practical  source  from  which  to  draw  topics  for 
language  exercises  that  take  the  form  of  drill  in  principles;  also,  the 
pupil  will  develop  a  versatility  of  expression  with  the  language 
already  at  his  command  that  will  be  of  untold  value  to  him  in  after 
life.  Letter- writing  day  will  be  a  trying  day,  but  the  day  of  all  others 
when  every  pupil  will  realize  where  he  stands,  and  if  we  have  to 
spend  time  writing  a  part  of  our  pupils'  letters  why  not  do  it  under 
our  own  name?  We  would  not  be  surprised  if  such  a  rigid  rule, 
faithfully  carried  out,  would,  in  a  few  years,  raise  the  standard  of  our 
pupils'  composition  beyond  all  expectation,  because  the  criterion  of 
the  ambitious  pupil  would  soon  become  to  write  so  that  nothing  would 
be  scratched  out  by  the  teacher  as  impossible  of  correction,  without 
breaking  the  rule. 

But  perhaps  the  best  result  of  all  would  be  that  such  a  rule  would 
compel  the  teacher  to  teach  step  by  step,  to  teach  carefully,  method- 
ically, thoroughly.  Such  a  rule  would  concentrate  the  attention  of 
both  teacher  and  pupil  upon  construction  rather  than  upon  words, 
and  lead  to  more  rapid  discovery  of  construction's  laws.  Is  not  the 
conviction  arising  that  in  the  past  we  have  been  whacking  around 
among  the  branches  of  difficulty  instead  of  striking  at  the  roots,  have 
been  teaching  a  hundred  words  where  we  have  taught  one  law, 
although  the  thorough  teaching  of  one  law  would  cause  a  thousand 
words  to  fall  into  line  and  do  their  duty;  and  have  not  words  been 
taught  very  superficially  by  failing  to  see  that  a  verb  could  not  be 
thoroughly  taught,  thoroughly  at  a  pupil's  disposal,  until  all  its  deri- 
vatives had  been  taught  also,  and  taught  in  contrast  as  to  their  vari- 
ous meanings,  because  in  signs  there  is  no  way  of  bringing  out  the 
difference  of  meaning  clearly?  We  refer  to  such  classes  of  words  as 
"obey,"  "obedient,"  "obedience,"  "obediently,"  which  are  signed 
practically  alike  in  conversation,  but  how  diverse  their  written  use! 

As  to  this  important  matter  of  teaching  construction  and  the  deriva- 
tives of  words,  we  seem  to  see  a  morning  star  arising  out  of  the  gloom 
since  we  have  examined  and  put  to  some  little  school-room  test  Mr. 
George  Wing's  simple  but  comprehensive  system  of  symbols,  treated 
of  in  the  "Annals"  for  July,  1885.  We  enthusiastically  believe  that 
they  embody  a  principle  which,  if  they  are  rightly  taught,  could  in  a 
few  months  be  made  to  convey  to  our  language-bewildered  pupils 
clearer  ideas  of  the  relation  of  different  parts  of  a  sentence  to  each 
other  as  many  years  of  the  study  of  grammar. 

Some  may  think  we  have  exaggerated  the  importance  of  giving  our 
pupils  a  good  command  of  language,  but  we  feel  confident  that  when 
we  touch  this  subject  we  touch  the  great  hidden  sore  of  the  deaf-mute 
world.  Instructors  in  general  have  no  idea  of  the  feeling  that  exists 
on  this  subject.  They  think  that  when  pupils  are  negligent  they  do 
not  care,  but  our  experience  is  that  the  older  pupils  grow  the  more 
intense  becomes  their  interest  in  those  exercises,  so  conducted  that 
the  pupils  cannot  fail  to  see  that  they  explain  away  difficulties 
in  language.  And  we  have  seen  tears  well  up  in  beautiful  eyes  as 
the  inability  to  use  proper  language  has  been  spoken  of  as  the  greatest 
cross  of  life,  while  we  have  heard  the  assertion,  "  I  envy  you  your 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  271 

command  of  language,"  nineteen  times  where  we  have  heard  once, 
"I  envy  you  your  power  of  hearing."  People  pity  the  deaf  because 
they  cannot  hear,  but  they  bemoan  themselves  because  they  cannot 
use  correct  language;  cannot  read  with  ease  and  pleasure.  Nothing 
is  really  known  except  what  has  been  experienced,  and  those  who 
have  been  face  to  face  with  the  heart  burnings  of  the  average  deaf- 
mute  graduate  know  that  there  is  hidden  pain  here  that  has  not  been 
dreamed  of. 

Miss  Black:  The  next  paper  to  be  read  is  upon  "The  Duties  of 
Supervisors,"  by  R.  M.  Ziegler,  of  Philadelphia. 

THE  SUPERVISOR  OF  DEAF  BOYS. 

The  successful  management  of  a  large  institution  for  the  deaf,  like 
any  other  undertaking  of  magnitude  and  importance,  requires  the  ap- 
plication of  the  principle  of  the  division  of  labor.  There  is,  or  should 
be,  at  the  head  of  each  institution  an  officer  whose  authority,  beyond 
such  limitations  as  the  laws  of  the  State,  or  the  corporation  he  serves 
place  him  under,  should  be  recognized  as  supreme  over  all  connected 
with  the  school.  This  officer  requires  the  assistance  of  numerous 
subordinates,  and  he  usually  delegates  to  each  of  them  the  manage- 
ment of  some  particular  department  of  the  school,  and  holds  him 
responsible  for  its  management.  He  has  the  right  to  select  such  per- 
sons as  are  most  capable  of  discharging  the  duties  of  the  offices  to  be 
filled.  For  a  steward,  he  requires  a  shrewd  business  man;  for  a  ma- 
tron, he  wants  a  woman  who  possesses  the  firm  and  sympathetic 
nature  required  in  one  who  is  to  act  the  part  of  a  mother  to  a  family 
of  three  or  four  hundred  children;  ^or  teachers,  he  chooses  men  and 
women  of  education  and  of  experience  in  imparting  to  others  what 
they  themselves  know.  Too  often,  however,  he  appears  to  think  that 
the  office  of  supervisor  is  of  no  great  importance,  and  that  its  duties 
can  be  discharged  by  any  one  who  can  waive  a  handkerchief,  or  beat 
a  drum  to  call  the  children  to  dinner,  chapel,  and  study,  and  can 
lock  and  unlock  a  door.  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  there  are  not  men 
and  women  of  intelligence  and  education  who  are  fully  capable  of 
discharging  their  duties,  filling  the  position  of  supervisor  in  many 
institutions,  but  if  common  report  as  to  the  salaries  paid  them,  and 
the  personal  consideration  in  which  they  are  held,  is  true,  it  shows 
that  their  occupation  is  regarded  as  menial.  When  one  considers 
that,  from  the  time  when  they  rise  in  the  morning  till  they  retire  in 
the  evening,  the  children  are  for  two  thirds  of  the  time  under  the 
control  of  the  supervisor,  and  thinks  of  his  great  influence  for  good 
or  evil  over  them,  it  is  hard  to  understand  how  this  state  of  affairs 
came  about. 

An  experience  of  several  years  as  supervisor  of  deaf  boys  shows 
that  their  successful  management  demands  executive  ability  of  no 
mean  order;  the  daily  exercise  of  greater  tact  and  skill  in  settling  dif- 
ferences than  was  ever  called  into  use  by  a  political  fence-mender  on 
the  eve  of  an  election,  great  quickness  of  decision,  the  avoidance  of 
all  appearance  of  partiality,  and  great  firmness  in  the  enforcement 
of  all  rules,  whether  made  by  himself  or  the  Principal.  He  must  also 
be  a  man  of  education  and  refinement;  of  education,  because  it  is  not 
always  possible  for  a  pupil  to  find  a  teacher  when  he  wants  aid  m  his 
studies,  and  the  supervisor  should  be  able  to  give  such  needed  assist- 
ance; of  refinement,  because  children  unconsciously  adopt  the  conver- 


272  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

sation  and  manners  of  that  adult  person  with  whom  they  come  most 
frequently  and  closely  into  contact,  and  a  vulgar  or  immoral  person 
would  obviously  be  out  of  place  among  them. 

He  should  be  good  natured,  slow  to  anger,  and  able  to  make  allow- 
ance for  the  youth  and  thoughtlessness  of  those  under  his  care,  yet 
conscious  of  the  dignity  of  his  position  and  capable  of  upholding  it. 
Anger  on  slight  provocation,  worry,  or  impatience,  will  render  him 
ridiculous,  and  to  permit  too  much  familiarity  on  the  part  of  the 
pupils  will  lower  their  estimate  of  his  importance,  and  diminish  their 
respect  for  his  authority  in  a  corresponding  ratio. 

He  must  be  kind  hearted  and  obliging,  able  to  sympathize  with 
the  younger  children  in  their  boyish  troubles,  and  ready  to  plan  for 
the  comfort  and  entertainment  of  all. 

In  short,  to  be  a  perfect  supervisor,  he  must  possess  all  the  virtues 
of  all  the  saints  in  the  calendar.  And,  in  addition,  he  should  be 
perfectly  conversant  with  the  language  of  signs.  At  a  former  con- 
vention, Mr.  Brock,  of  Illinois,  argued  that  the  office  of  supervisor 
should  be  utilized  as  a  course  of  preparation  for  teachers,  through 
which  they  could  become  acquainted  with  the  sign-language  and  the 
peculiarities  of  the  deaf.  This  distinguished  teacher  evidently  shares 
with  many  others  a  low  estimate  of  the  importance  of  a  supervisor's 
position.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  a  deaf  person  who  has  been 
educated  in  an  institution,  and  who  has  afterwards  pursued  an  ad- 
vanced course  of  study,  is  the  best  possible  person  for  the  place;  but, 
if  a  hearing  supervisor  is  desired,  he  should  be  selected  from  among 
the  corps  of  teachers,  and  should  be  one  who  perfectly  understands  the 
language  of  the  deaf,  and  has  associated  much  with  them.  It  is  not 
at  all  conducive  to  good  order  to  have  the  pupils  plotting  mischief 
before  the  supervisor's  face,  not  to  speak  of  the  inconvenience  that 
would  result  from  the  difficulty  of  carrying  on  communication  with 
them,  and  it  takes  many  years  to  acquire  sufficient  knowledge  of  the 
peculiarities  of  the  deaf  to  manage  them  successfully. 

It  may  be  argued  that  it  would  be  impossible  to  find  a  successful 
teacher  who  would  willingly  perform  such  arduous  work  for  so  small 
a  salary;  but  why  not  increase  the  salary?  Is  not  it  just  as  impor- 
tant that  the  pupils  should  be  well  trained  in  morals  and  manners 
as  that  they  should  be  well  educated  mentally,  and  why  should  not 
the  person  who  perforins  the  former  work  be  as  well  paid  as  the  one 
who  does  the  latter? 

It  should  be  the  duty  of  the  supervisor  to  make  all  minor  rules  for 
the  government  of  the  pupils  while  out  of  school,  and  to  see  that 
these  rules,  and  those  made  by  the  Principal  and  Board  of  Direc- 
tors, are  obeyed.  If  any  great  innovation  is  contemplated,  he  should, 
of  course,  consult  the  Principal,  but  it  adds  not  a  little  to  the  dignity 
of  his  position,  and  to  the  respect  that  will  be  paid  his  authority,  for 
the  pupils  to  know  that  the  supervisor  is,  in  reality,  their  guardian, 
and  not  merely  a  monitor  whose  duty  it  is  to  report  to  the  Principal 
their  misbehavior.  No  supervisor  can  be  successful  who  does  not 
possess  this  power.  The  pupils  will  respect  neither  him  nor  his 
authority.  They  will  call  him,  and  really  consider  him,  a  " spy"  and 
"tale-bearer."  This  is,  of  course,  very  foolish,  but  children,  and 
especially  deaf  children,  will  think  and  do  foolish  things,  and  allow- 
ance must  be  made  for  the  fact. 

For  this  reason,  the  supervisor  should  a#lso  have  permission  to 
punish  the  pupils  for  minor  offenses  when  necessary.    It  may  seem 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  273 

dangerous  to  trust  him  with  a  power  that  is  capable  of  so  great  abuse, 
and  the  Principal  may  naturally  prefer  to  keep  it  in  his  own  hands, 
but  there  is  always  a  remedy  for  cruelty  or  injustice  in  the  exercise 
of  this  duty,  to  wit:  the  discharge  of  the  supervisor  and  the  appoint- 
ment of  one  who  will  exercise  more  discretion.  Any  misbehavior, 
however,  which  calls  for  exceptionally  severe  discipline,  should  be 
reported  to  the  Principal  and  the  punishment  left  in  his  hands. 

And  it  is  of  the  greatest  importance  that  the  supervisor  should 
-always  be  upheld  by  the  Principal  in  the  presence  of  the  pupils,  when 
a  complaint  is  made  against  him,  or  a  pupil  is  brought  forward  for 
punishment,  even  though  the  Principal  believes  that  the  supervisor 
is  in  the  wrong,  for  it  is  discouraging  to  the  officer  and  prejudicial  to 
the  cause  of  good  order  to  have  a  pupil  go  out  among  his  mates  and 
boast  that  he  was  right  and  the  supervisor  wrong.  If  it  is  necessary 
to  admonish  the  supervisor,  it  should  be  done  in  private,  and  the 
remedy  of  dismissal  for  continued  wrong  doing,  whether  intentional 
or  not,  always  remains. 

He  should  have  charge  of  the  study-room  in  the  evening,  for  he 
knows  the  characteristics  of  each  pupil,  while  a  teacher  very  often 
does  not  even  know  the  names  of  those  who  are  not  members  of  his 
own  class,  and,  besides,  there  will  then  be  one  code  of  rules  for  the 
government  of  the  room  from  one  end  of  the  school  year  to  the  other, 
while,  if  the  duty  is  delegated  to  the  instructors,  the  weekly  change 
in  the  care  taken  will,  as  Mr.  B.  D.  Pettengill  has  well  observed  in  an 
article  in  the  "American  Annals,"  be  likely  to  prevent  any  regular 
system  of  management  from  being  carried  out,  the  different  managers 
often  having  very  different  ideas  in  regard  to  the  extent  of  liberty 
that  should  be  allowed  to  boys,  and  differing  very  much  in  their 
ability  to  make  themselves  respected  and  obeyed. 

Besides  these,  the  supervisor  should  have  charge  of  the  Sunday 
school,  say  grace  in  the  pupil's  dining-room,  and  if  he  be  the  right 
man  for  the  place,  there  is  no  reason  why  he  should  not  take  turns 
with  the  instructors  in  conducting  the  chapel  exercises.  He  should 
see  that  the  pupils  are  always  neat  and  clean,  that  every  possible  pro- 
vision is  made  for  their  comfort,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as 
naturally  come  within  this  province. 

To  manage  the  pupils  successfully  the  supervisor  must  gain  their 
good  will  and  affection,  and  their  hearty  cooperation  in  maintaining 
good  order.  If  he  has  sufficient  tact  to  avoid  antagonizing  them  he 
will  seldom  be  obliged  to  resort  to  harsh  measures  for  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  rules.  There  are  few  boys  who,  if  treated  as  gentlemen, 
will  not  act  as  such,  and  politeness  and  consideration  go  a  great  way, 
even  with  children.  When  possible  to  avoid  it,  a  pupil  should  not 
be  reproved  or  punished  in  public,  as  his  dislike  of  appearing  wrong 
in  the  eyes  of  his  schoolmates  will  only  confirm  him  in  his  obstinacy 
and  bad  behavior.  If,  however,  it  is  ever  necessary  to  reprove  or 
punish  publicly,  the  pupil  should  afterwards,  when  he  has  had  time 
to  cool  down,  be  taken  aside  and  reasoned  with.  This  will  generally 
remove  all  trace  of  ill-feeling  towards  the  supervisor,  and  will  render 
him  much  more  tractable  in  the  future. 

It  is  well  to  be  rather  strict  at  the  opening  of  the  school  year,  in 
order  that  the  pupils  may  become  habituated  to  the  observance  of 
the  rules.  Afterwards  it  is  wise  to  allow  as  much  liberty  as  is  con- 
sistent with  the  preservation  of  good  order  and  the  welfare  of  the 
children. 

18d 


274         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

It  is  an  aid  to  the  supervisor  to  have  the  assistance  of  a  number  of 
the  older  pupils  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  for  these  will  have  a 
personal  interest  in  the  maintenance  of  good  order,  and  their  exam- 
ple will  be  beneficial  to  the  other  pupils;  but  they  should  be  selected 
by  the  supervisor,  and  not  by  the  pupils,  who  would  be  inclined,  by 
partiality  and  the  hope  of  personal  favor,  to  select  their  particular 
friends.  But  these  assistants,  not  having  arrived  at  years  of  discre- 
tion, and  not  being  directly  responsible  for  the  management  of  the 
department,  should  on  no  account  be  permitted  to  inflict  punish- 
ment. 

Much  more  might  be  said  on  a  subject  of  such  vital  importance, 
but  the  above  salient  points  will,  I  believe,  sufficiently  indicate  my 
ideas  of  the  qualifications,  rights,  and  duties  of  a  supervisor  of  deaf 
boys,  and  of  the  best  method  of  management. 

Professor  Gillett  here  took  the  chair. 

Dr.  Gillett:  The  next  paper  to  be  read  is  "The  Importance  of 
Supervisors'  Work,"  by  P.  J.  Hasenstab,  of  Illinois. 

IMPORTANCE   OP   THE   WORK   OF  THE   SUPERVISOR. 

It  is  of  quite  recent  date  that  the  supervisor's  work  has  been  recog- 
nized to  be  of  great  importance.  Some  institutions,  usually  large 
ones,  assign  the  whole  charge  of  the  pupils  of  each  sex  to  one  or  more 
responsible  persons  of  the  same  sex.  Several  institutions  still  retain 
the  former  system  of  having  instructors  do  the  work  by  turns.  Some 
appoint  reliable  pupils  to  assist  in  the  monitorial  work. 

It  was  remarked  some  time  back  by  one  of  our  Principals,  that  a 
person  appointed  to  the  office  of  supervisor  need  not  be  expected  to 
know  the  language  of  the  deaf  as  much  as  the  instructors.  Such  an 
opinion  is  a  great  mistake,  and  its  application  unjust  to  the  deaf, 
inasmuch  as  a  knowledge  of  the  language  is  not  only  necessary  to 
the  proper  discharge  of  the  supervisor's  duties,  but  is  also  essential 
to  the  welfare  of  the  pupils,  as  it  is  the  means  of  their  understanding 
him  and  his  understanding  them.  HowT  can  he,  without  a  sufficient 
knowledge  of  the  language,  successfully  supervise,  when  he  must 
always  be  finding  something  to  do  for  those  in  his  charge,  and  this 
must  be  done  through  the  use  of  their  language?  This  requirement 
may,  however,  be  modified  in  case  of  his  being  appointed  to  associate 
with  a  supervisor  who  has  already  remained  for  some  time  in  office, 
and  who  knows  the  language  and  the  pupils  well.. 

It  may  be  held  that  instructors,  because  of  their  immediate  and 
constant  interest  in  the  deaf,  and  of  their  acquaintance  with  their 
peculiarities  of  character  and  difficulties,  acquired  in  their  school- 
rooms, can  best  perform  the  monitorial  work.  But  should  we  not 
rather  say  that  the  proper  apprenticeship  of  a  teacher  is  in  the  office 
of  a  supervisor?  For  by  reason  of  the  valuable  experience  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  various  dispositions  of  the  deaf  which  the  supervisor 
acquires,  he  will  then  certainly  succeed  in  the  higher  station.  An 
objection  to  instructors  doing  this  work  is  that  they  cannot  grasp  the 
various  dispositions  of  the  pupils,  because  they  are  with  the  pupils 
only  as  often  as  their  turn  comes  around  while  the  supervisor  is  with 
them  constantly.  To  be  able  to  grasp  and  remember  the  disposition 
of  each  one  of  the  pupils,  and  then  to  treat  each  one  as  his  disposition 
may  demand,  is  of  great  value,  and  is  a  secret  to  success  in  supervis- 
ion.   It  may  seem  plausible  that  supervision  by  instructors  would  be 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF  THE   DEAF.  275 

offering  to  pupils  ample  opportunities  to  study  and  become  accus- 
tomed to  various  methods  of  discipline;  but  it  is  not,  for  they  are 
rather  too  young  to  judge  of  the  merits  and  demerits  of  such  various 
disciplines.  It  is  generally  their  nature  to  be  more  or  less  mischiev- 
ous, and  to  look  upon  discipline  only  as  something  to  be  resisted  and 
evaded.  The  good  supervisor's  discipline  is  uniform,  and  pupils  will 
work  day  after  day  with  much  less  friction  under  his  unvarying 
tern.  He  is  alone  responsible  for  the  general  behavior  of  the  pupils 
outside  of  school. 

Still  another  objection  presents  itself  to  instructors  acting  as  super- 
visors. They  are  expected  to  take  enough  time  for  recreation  to 
preserve  their  vigor,  and  to  make  necessary  preparations  for  the  next 
day's  work.  To  add  the  work  of  supervisor  to  their  regular  work 
would  be  refusing  them  a  large  portion  of  time  demanded  for  recre- 
ation and  such  preparation.  The  release  of  teachers  from  the  work 
of  supervision  would  enable  them  to  use  their  energies  in  the  school- 
rooms to  much  better  purpose. 

Pupils  appointed  to  do  the  monitorial  work,  often  look  down,  by 
reason  of  their  office,  upon  their  fellow  pupils.  Thus  do  they  often 
do  their  work  rather  rashly.  On  the  other  hand,  the  pupils  natu- 
rally do  not  cheerfully  mind  such  pupil  monitors,  and  they  are  slow 
to  obey  them,  except  when  they  are  immediate  vehicles  of  command 
from  the  Principal  or  a  teacher  on  duty. 

Pupils  coming  to  an  institution  bring  thither  the  manners  and 
habits  which  they  acquire  at  home  from  their  folks  and  companions. 
Some  are  refined,  others  coarse,  and  others  very  rude.  At  home  they 
had  their  own  various  circles  of  association.  Here  they  are  all  thrown 
together  into  a  general  circle,  and  their  manners  and  ways  are  like- 
wise intermingled.  Naturally  they  w7ill  soon  take  to  coarser  manners 
but  for  the  kind  and  firm  control  of  their  supervisor.  Again,  they 
all  have  had  different  methods  of  home  training,  before  they  came  to 
school.  Here  a  general  method  of  training  is  before  them,  and  new 
to  them,  and  many  resist  it  in  various  wrays,  and  need  a  steady  and 
unvarying  hand  to  overcome  their  restiveness.  The  supervisor  works 
with  instructors  in  developing  the  moral  character  of  the  pupils.  In 
school  the  instructors  instil,  moral  principles  and  good  manners,  and 
the  supervisor  takes  care  that  they  practice  them  outside  of  school. 

A  supervisor,  because  of  his  being  in  constant  contact  with  the 
pupils  intrusted  to  his  charge,  studies  and  understands  their  disposi- 
tions, peculiarities  of  character,  and  difficulties.  With  a  good  under- 
standing of  these  peculiarities  he  can  treat  the  pupils  more  fairly, 
and,  in  thus  doing,  win  their  esteem  and  confidence.  They  feel  as 
though  they  have  a  brother  in  him,  and  will  ever  obey  him  without 
question. 

Hearing  children,  when  at  home  from  school,  are  under  the  eye  of 
their  parents  and  guardians.  Their  wants  are  supplied,  and  their 
doings  noticed,  corrected,  and  improved.  Briefly,  their  physical, 
intellectual,  and  moral  conditions  are  looked  after.  Deaf  children, 
at  an  institution  away  from  their  parents  and  guardians,  constantly 
need  some  one  to  look  after  their  wants  and  doings  in  like  manner. 
This  duty  should  be  assigned  to  a  supervisor,  because  of  his  constant 
contact  with  them  and  because  he  best  understands  their  dispositions 
and  difficulties.  It  is  especially  desirable  that  he  be  wise,  observant, 
and  far-seeing.  If  he  can  explain  to  them  the  evils  of  their  doings 
without  unduly  wounding  their  feelings,  and  if  he  can  even  explain 


276         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

those  which  have  been  done  by  others  older  and  more  responsible, 
without  weakening  their  esteem  for  the  doers,  so  much  the  better  it 
will  be. 

A  supervisor,  in  order  to  work  successfully,  must  be  of  good  char- 
acter; must  be  courteous  in  his  manners  and  considerate  in  word  and 
deed;  must  have  his  temper  under  entire  control;  must  study  the 
peculiar  dispositions  and  difficulties  of  those  in  his  charge;  must  set- 
tle their  disputes  quietly  and  kindly;  must  be  kind,  yet  firm;  must 
lead,  not  drive;  must  show  himself  loving  in  all  his  work;  must  be 
ready  to  lift  them  from  troubles  and  perplexities;  and  must  always 
set  them  a  good  example.  Walter  Scott  makes  Ivanhoe  say,  "As  the 
leader  is,  so  will  the  followers  be."  A  supervisor  is  a  leader,  not  a 
driver.  "He  who  can  make  a  constant  example  of  his  habits  of 
courtesy  and  cleanliness,  Christian  bearing,  and  high  aspirations  for 
excellence  of  character,  will  be  able  to  improve  the  moral  condition 
of  others." 

"Example  is  mightier  than  precept."  Suppose  a  supervisor  pre- 
scribe rules  of  propriety  for  pupils  in  his  charge,  and  yet  fail  to  observe 
some  one  of  them  himself,  even  in  their  presence,  what  is  the  effect? 
If  they  accuse  him  of  the  "beam  in  his  own  eye,"  can  we  wonder,  or 
will  we  wonder,  that  his  influence  is  greatly  weakened?  Thus  patience 
and  care  are  required  of  a  supervisor  to  lead  pupils  to  observe  his 
rules.  Let  him  exalt  his  office;  command  the  respect  of  the  pupils 
for  it;  remind  them  repeatedly  that  the  supervisor  is  their  leader; 
entreat  them  to  aid  him  in  whatever  he  may  wish  to  do  for  their  own 
good. 

At  the  last  convention,  held  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  it  was  inquired 
"  whether  pupils  give  the  respectful  obedience  to  the  commands  of  a 
supervisor  that  they  are  accustomed  to  give  to  those  of  a  teacher,  and 
whether  it  is  best  for  the  good  order  of  an  institution  and  the  govern- 
ment of  pupils"  that  supervision  should  be  committed  to  teachers  or 
to  supervisors.  I  will  try  and  give  an  answer  to  the  first  question,  partly 
from  my  experience  both  as  a  pupil  and  as  a  supervisor,  and  partly 
from  my  observation.  It  depends  on  the  nature  of  the  command 
itself,  on  the  manner  in  which  it  is  given,  and  on  the  person  giving  it. 
It  may  be  unnecessary  to  state  these  three  conditions  more  fully  than 
to  say  that  a  just  command,  well  given,  given  by  a  well  trusted  per- 
son, would  be  cheerfully  and  respectfully  obeyed.  Not  long  ago  a  lack 
of  acquaintance  with  the  language  of  the  deaf  in  the  supervisor  at  a 
certain  institution  was  the  cause  of  serious  trouble  among  the  boys. 
At  the  Ohio  institution  there  were  once  two  hearing  supervisors  whose 
parents  were  deaf-mutes,  and  they  had  little  trouble  in  their  work. 
Again,  there  are  two  deaf  supervisors  at  the  Philadelphia  institution, 
and  they  are  doing  very  finely.  Similar  examples  may  be  found  in 
some  other  institutions.  These  examples  may  testify  in  favor  of  mon- 
itorial work  by  supervisors,  and  by  supervisors  acquainted  with  the 
sign  language. 

The  first  portion  of  this  paper  may  serve  for  a  response  to  the  other 
question. 

Observation  and  experience  seem  to  show  that  deaf  persons,  once 
pupils  at  an  institution,  when  wisely  selected,  are  able  to  work  more 
satisfactorily,  by  reason  of  their  own  experience  with  supervisors  when 
themselves  pupils,  and  of  their  knowing  what  should  be  done  and 
what  should  not  be  done.  But  for  certain  reasons  we  would  have 
hearing  supervisors  also.     For  an  institution  that  can  afford  to  have 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OP   THE   DEAF.  277 

two  or  more  supervisors  of  each  sex,  it  would  be  advisable  that  at 
least  one  of  each  sex  should  be  a  deaf  person. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  paper  is  "Work  Done  in  the  Pennsyl- 
vania Oral  School,"  by  Miss  Emma  Garrett. 

A  SUMMARY  OF  WORK  DONE  IN  PENNSYLVANIA  ORAL  SCHOOL  FOR  DEAF-* 
MUTES,  SCRANTON,  PENNSYLVANIA,  .1UNE  18,  1886. 

My  school  is  at  present  a  day  school.  It  practically  began  Septem- 
ber, 1884.  It  consists  of  thirteen  pupils  ranging  from  six  to  fifteen 
years  of  age.  We  have  received  many  applications  but  can  only 
admit  at  present  such  pupils  as  can  attend  as  day  pupils.  We  hope 
to  receive  State  aid,  next  year  to  enable  us  to  establish  a  boarding 
school,  as  that  seems  to  be  the  need  of  the  locality  in  which  our  school 
is.     I  prefer  day  schools  when  practicable. 

I  am  the  teacher  as  well  as  the  Principal  of  the  school.  There  are 
eight  pupils  in  one  class,  three  in  another, and  two  that  require  indi- 
vidual instruction.  Owing  to  sickness  and  other  causes,  the  average 
time  that  the  most  advanced  class — consisting  of  eight  pupils — has 
been  under  oral  instruction,  is  about  fourteen  months;  two  of  them 
had  -had  some  instruction  in  signs,  and  are  consequently  behind  the 
rest  of  the  class  in  speech. 

My  principal  work  has  been  to  develop  speech  and  language.  If 
this  work  is  well  begun  it  will  be  a  comparatively  easy  matter  to 
instruct  them  in  the  ordinary  English  branches  later.  The  pupils  in 
this  class  talk  with  much  freedom.  They  commenced  arithmetic  nine 
months  ago  and  are  all  now  able  to  do  simple  work  in  addition  and 
subtraction.  I  have  no  period  for  original  composition  or  letter  writ- 
ing yet,  but  encourage  the  children  to  talk  constantly  and  correctly; 
and  when  they  have  any  spare  minutes,  six  of  them  are  very  ambitious 
to  write  letters,  and  from  the  fact  that  they  are  acquiring  considerable 
language,  they  make  creditable  attempts.  They  have  not  been  in- 
structed long  enough  to  enable  them  to  write  without  some  gram- 
matical errors,  but  they  touch  upon  many  different  subjects  and 
nearly  all  their  letters  are  intelligible  in  meaning,  well  written,  and 
correctly  spelled. 

They  write  a  great  deal  from  dictation.  The  eight  pupils  referred 
to  read  my  lips  very  well,  and  some  of  them  read  each  other's  lips 
well.  Two  of  them  lost  hearing  by  sickness  after  acquiring  some 
speech— one  at  six  years  of  age  and  one  at  seven.  One  retained  good 
speech,  although  his  voice  was  weak;  that  of  the  other  was  imperfect. 
The  first  entered  December  10,  1885.  He  has  been  taught  a  little 
geography  since  then.  It  is  my  intention  to  begin  geography  with 
the  other  seven  next  September.  The  work  of  the  other  pupils,  most 
of  whom  have  only  been  in  school  a  few  months,  is  in  the  same  direc- 
tion as  the  class  of  eight,  but  they  are  not,  of  course,  as  far  advanced. 
One  pupil  has  made  but  little  progress,  but  I  have  not  yet  determined 
whether  there  is  any  mental  deficiency,  or  whether  he  is  only  back- 
ward. 

I  have  no  pupils  who  had  enough  hearing  to  learn  to  talk  before 
coming  to  school,  but  one  girl  has  since  developed  considerable  appre- 
ciation of  sound.  Two  young  pupils  who  entered  recently  give  prom- 
ise of  being  subjects  for  aural  training. 

Three  of  the  pupils  did  not  begin  to  learn  to  talk  until  they  were 
fourteen  years  of  age.  We  shall  not  see  the  best  results  of  oral 
method  until  this  work  is  begun  earlier,  and  parents  of  deaf  children 


278  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

understand  that  they  should  treat  their  deaf  babes  exactly  as  though 
they  heard,  except  that  they  should  let  the  deaf  infant  see  tvords  on 
their  mouths  many  times  where  they  would  repeat  them  many  times  to  the 
ear  of  the  hearing  infant. 

It  has  grieved  me  to  learn  that  directions  have  been  issued  to  pa- 
rents, advising  them  to  teach  signs  instead  of  spoken  words  to  young 
deaf  children,  when  there  are  instances  on  record  that  prove  that 
their  future  speech  would  be  so  much  better  if  they  were  early  taught 
to  speak. 

If  the  school  were  larger  I  should  classify  it  as  I  did  in  oral  branch 
of  Pennsylvania  institution — placing  semi-mutes,  semi-deaf  pupils, 
and  congenital  and  practically  congenital,  each  in  separate  classes; 
of  course,  sending  semi-mutes  and  semi-deaf  pupils  to  hearing  schools 
as  soon  as  possible.  I  sent  a  semi-mute  from  our  school  to  a  hearing 
school  last  September.  (See  "A  Deaf  Pupil  in  a  Hearing  School," 
January,  1886,  number  of  "American  Annals  of  the  Deaf.") 

Admirable  as  were  the  decisions  of  the  Milan  International  Con- 
vention in  1880,  I  feel  that  not  only  should  all  new  pupils  be  given 
oral  method  as  it  suggested,  but  that  many  pupils  in  sign  schools 
could  still  attain  to  an  intelligible  speech  and  considerable  facility  in 
lip  reading,  if  they  were  entirely  removed  from  sign  communication 
and  surroundings.  I  would  save  every  new  pupil  to  oral  method, 
but  1  know  it  to  be  possible  to  redeem  many  of  the  old  ones,  too. 

The  following  programme  of  our  closing  exercises,  held  on  June 
26,  1885,  may  be  of  interest.  The  average  time  that  class  taking  part 
in  exercises  had  been  under  oral  instruction  was  six  months  at  that 
time;  there  was  but  one  semi-mute  member  of  the  class,  and  she  was 
not  able  to  be  present  at  the  closing  exercises. 

Class  gave  dates — day  of  week,  month,  and  year;  number  of  days  in 
a  week;  names  of  days;  school  days;  days  spent  at  home;  number  of 
months  in  a  year;  names  of  months;  names  of  spring,  summer,  fall, 
and  winter  months.  Names  of  last  month,  this  month,  and  next 
month,  each  pupil  in  class  repeating  the  answers  in  turn. 

A  clock  face  was  drawn  on  the  blackboard  without  hands.  In  same, 
each  pupil  drew  hour  and  minute  hands  at  certain  times  suggested 
by  persons  in  the  audience,  and  then  told  in  speech  what  time  it  was, 
afterward  writing  it  on  the  blackboard;  for  example,  uIt  is  twenty- 
five  minutes  of  three  o'clock." 

Class  counted  up  to  one  hundred — one  pupil  repeated  the  numbers 
to  ten,  the  next  to  twenty,  and  so  on. 

Class  wrote  from  dictation  vowel  sounds,  marking  with  Worcester's 
dictionary  marks,  and  also  words  containing  all  consonant  sounds. 
Class  performed  following  actions  and  directions  given  from  lips. 
Walk  to  the  door.  Stand  up. 

Run  to  me.  Come  to  me. 

Point  to  the  blackboard.  Go  to  your  seat. 

Touch  the  desk.  Shut  the  window. 

Sit  down.  Open  the  window. 

They  made  following  answers  to  the  question,  "  What  can  you  do?" 
I  can  see.  I  can  jump. 

I  can  talk.  I  can  sweep. 

I  can  think.  I  can  laugh. 

I  can  smell.  I  can  play. 

I  can  walk.  I  can  sew. 

1  can  run.  I  can  pick  slate  (in  a  coal 

breaker). 


OF  AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  279 

Class  made  following  requests  in  speech: 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  glass  of  water. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  piece  of  bread. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  piece  of  pie. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  cup  of  coffee. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  cup  of  tea. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  glass  of  milk. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  some  sugar. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  piece  of  butter. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  piece  of  meat. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  piece  of  potato. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  some  salt. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  some  pepper. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  knife. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  fork. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  a  spoon. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  an  apple. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  some  molasses. 

Mamma,  please  give  me  some  candy. 

One  pupil  was  asked,  "Do  you  like  apples?"  She  replied,  "Yes,  I 
like  apples."    "Do  you  like  coffee?    "No,  I  do  not  like  coffee." 

Another  was  directed:  "  Put  the  book  on  the  table;"  "  Put  the  book 
under  the  table." 

Another  was  told:  "Bring  me  the  book;"  "Take  the  book  to  Ella." 

Another  was  asked  in  speech,  "  What  have  I  in  my  hand?"  Reply 
was:  "You  have  a  pencil  in  your  hand."  "What  is  that?"  Reply: 
"That  is  a  rubber." 

"Whose  rubber  is  it?"    Reply:  "It  is  Miss  Garrett's  rubber." 

"Which  book  do  you  wish?"    Reply:  "I  wish  the  red  book." 

Class  took  turns  in  speaking  names  of  colors  and  pointing  them 
out. 

Pointed  out  square,  round,  and  oblong  objects. 

Class  spoke  names  of  different  pieces  of  money. 

1  cent.  10  cents. 

2  cents.  25  cents. 

3  cents.  50  cents. 

5  cents.  $1.00  (one  dollar). 

Played  store  with  cake  and  candy,  one  acting  as  buyer  and  the 
other  as  seller.    Spoke  the  following: 

"Please  give  me  five  cents  worth  of  candy." 
"  Please  give  me  five  cents  worth  of  cake." 

Spoke  names  of  some  parts  of  the  body  in  turn,  and  pointed  them 
out  in  answer  to  spoken  directions: 

Show  me  your  mouth;  lip;  head;  eye;  arm;  ear;  thumb;  chin;  neck; 
finger;  back  tooth;  cheek;  hand;  side;  nail;  nose;  foot;  toe;  knee; 
leg;  face;  tongue;  elbow. 

And  some  common  articles  of  clothing:  coat;  necktie;  cuff;  vest, 
or  waistcoat;  shoe;  handkerchief;  pantaloons,  or  trousers;  slipper; 
■dress;  shirt;  glove;  stocking;  collar;  button. 

Class  pointed  out  following  in  answer  to  direction: 
Show  me — 

A  strong  man.  A  new  shoe. 

A  little  dog.  An  old  shoe. 

A  red  bird.  A  wide  room. 

A  white  shawl.  A  narrow  room. 


280  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

A  yellow  chair.  A  sick  girl. 

A  green  leaf.  A  weak  girl. 

A  blue  dress.  A  pretty  girl. 

A  large  stove.  A  good  girl. 

A  small  house.  A  good  boy. 

A  tall  woman.  A  long  bench. 

A  short  woman. 
Class  wrote  the  following,  dictated  from  lips: 

That  dog  is  fierce.  That  apple  is  sour. 

That  box  is  heavy.  That  colt  is  wild. 

That  book  is  rough.  That  knife  is  bright. 

This  book  is  smooth.  That  boy  is  angry. 

That  house  is  ugly.  That  cow  is  good. 

That  house  is  high. 
Pupils  went  through  exercises  correctly  and  quickly. 
The  following  is  the  programme  of  closing  exercises  on  June  18,. 
1886,  of  same  class  after  fourteen  months  oral  instruction. 

Class  in  turn  wrote  following  on  blackboard,  dictated  to  them: 

"  We  are  glad  to  see  the  ladies,  gentlemen,  and  children." 

"  School  closes  to-day,  Friday,  June  18,  1886.     We  shall  have  no 

school  in  July  and  August;  we  call  it  our  summer  vacation." 

"All  the  pupils  in  our  class  will  talk  every  day  to  our  fathers, 
mothers,  brothers,  sisters,  and  friends,  and  be  helpful  to  them  while 
at  home." 

Class  did  examples  in  addition  and  subtraction  on  blackboard,  dic- 
tated in  speech. 

Examples  of  aural  work.    A  child  who  did  not  speak  a  year  and  a 
half  ago  answered  some  questions  through  hearing  as  follows: 
"What  do  I  teach  you?" 

"You  teach  me  to  speak,  to  hear,  and  many  other  things." 
Class  gave  a  short  account  in  speech  of  what  men  do  in  Prang's 
Pictures  of  Trades  and  Occupations — printer,  farmer,  gardener,  tailor, 
shoemaker,  blacksmith,  housebuilder,  carpenter,  etc. 

Class  gave  a  number  of  examples  of  persons  or  people,  things,  ani- 
mals, birds,  fish,  insects,  reptiles,  fruits,  vegetables,  flowers,  and  trees. 
Also  wrote  a  number  of  examples  of  each. 

Questions  for  the  one  pupil  referred  to  who  had  received  a  little 
instruction  in  geography  since  January,  1886  : 
What  do  you  understand  by  direction  ? 
What  are  the  four  principal  directions  ? 
Point  to  them  ? 

What  else  must  we  know  beside  direction  of  a  place  to  find  it? 
What  are  some  of  the  measures  we  use  for  short  distances  ? 
What  are  some  of  the  measures  we  use  for  long  distances  ? 
Which  measure  should  you  use  to  find  size  of  our  school-room  ? 
What  is  the  size  of  it  ? 
How  many  inches  make  a  foot? 
How  many  feet  make  a  yard  ? 
How  many  yards  make  a  rod  ? 
How  many  rods  make  a  mile  ? 
What  is  the  principal  street  in  Scranton  ? 
In  what  direction  does  it  run  ? 

How  far  is  it  from  our  school,  and  in  what  direction  ? 
Name  two  streets  that  have  the  same  direction  as  the  principal 
street  ? 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  281 

Name  two  streets  that  cross  it. 

In  what  direction  do  they  run? 

What  are  the  principal  natural  divisions  of  the  earth? 

What  State  do  you  live  in? 

What  county  is  your  school  in? 

What  city  is  your  school  in? 

Bound  Pennsylvania. 

What  mineral  is  found  in  large  quantities  in  and  near  Scranton? 

What  are  the  vertebrate  animals?    Give  examples. 

What  are  the  articulate  animals?    Give  examples. 

What  are  the  mollusk  animals?    Give  examples. 

What  are  the  radiate  animals?    Give  examples. 

The  semi-mute  pupil  whom  I  sent  to  a  hearing  school  last  Septem- 
ber kindly  consented  to  come  to  closing  exercises  and  let  the  audience 
see  his  perfect  ability  to  read  the  lips.  He  speaks  German  also,  and 
reads  it  on  the  lips. 

A  lady  of  fifty  years  of  age  whom  I  have  given  private  lessons  in 
lip  reading  this  winter  also  consented  to  allow  the  audience  to  see  her 
read  my  lips.  She  could  not  understand  me  at  first  lesson.  She  now 
reads  almost  everything  I  say,  rarely  missing  a  word.' 

In  my  paper  entitled  "A  Plea  that  the  Deaf-Mutes  of  America  may 
be  Taught  to  Use  their  Voices,"  read  before  the  Tenth  Convention  of 
American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf,  held  in  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  in 
August,  1882,  I  said  that  I  felt  that  there  was  but  little  to  add  to  the 
evidence  that  we  already  had  in  favor  of  speech  for  the  mass  of  the 
deaf,  little  thinking  that  four  years  would  roll  by  and  find  the  ma- 
jority of  the  deaf  children  of  this  great  and  beneficent  Government 
still  under  sign  instruction. 

It  is  true  that  a  few  new  oral  and  aural  schools  have  been  started 
since  then:  my  late  school — the  Oral  Branch  of  Pennsylvania  Insti- 
tution for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb— which  I  established  in  Philadelphia 
in  October,  1881,  grew  while  under  my  charge  to  be  a  school  of  nearly 
eighty  pupils  in  two  and  a  half  years,  nine  classes  being  formed  in 
that  time;  the  Voice  and  Hearing  School  for  the  Deaf,  Englewood, 
Illinois;  the  Milwaukee  Day  School;  Miss  Mary  S.  Garrett's  Oral 
School  for  the  Deaf,  No.  7  S.  Merrick  Street,  Philadelphia;  and  my 
present  young  school  in  Scranton.  But  although  thankful  for  these, 
I  long  for  the  time  when  pure  oral  instruction  shall  be  general. 

I  cannot  be  satisfied  while  fifty-two  out  of  sixty-four  schools  and 
institutions  for  the  deaf  in  the  United  States  employ  the  old  sign  sys- 
tem or  combined  system. 

The  Abbe  Tarra,  President  of  the  International  Congress  of  1880, 
has  had  nearly  thirty  years'  experience  in  teaching  the  deaf,  first  by 
sign  method,  then  by  combined  method,  and  latterly  by  the  pure  oral. 
He  says:  "All  deaf  mutes  capable  of  being  taught  by  means  of  signs 
are  capable  of  being  taught  by  means  of  speech,  without  exception." 
He  further  says,  that  children  who  are  being  taught  by  oral  method 
should  be  kept  absolutely  away  from  signs  and  the  manual  alphabet. 

These  true  words  cannot  be  quoted  too  often.  We  occasionally  hear 
of  deaf  children  who  seem  unable  to  learn  to  talk.  This  may  be  on 
account  of  mental  deficiency  or  simply  because  the  child  is  slower  in 
learning  and  developing  than  others.  In  the  latter  case  more  teach- 
ing and  training  than  is  necessary  for  the  ordinary  child  must  be 
given  in  order  to  accomplish  the  result. 


282         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

The  Chairman:  We  can  now  take  a  few  minutes  for  the  consider- 
ation of  these  papers. 

Mr.  Walker:  I  move  that  we  defer  discussion  upon  these  papers 
until  after  the  report  on  necrology  is  made. 

This  motion  was  seconded  and  carried. 

The  Chairman:  We  now  come,  my  friends  and  comrades,  to  the 
performance  of  a  very  melancholy  duty.  Who  knows  for  which  ones 
of  us  this  duty  will  be  performed  at  the  next  convention?  There  are 
familiar  faces  in  my  mind  now,  for  they  have  been  engraved  on  my 
heart,  that  we  cannot  look  upon,  and  yet,  I  am  accustomed  so  to 
believe  and  I  feel,  that  though  we  see  them  not,  still  they  are  with 
us,  and  they  see  us  They  know  very  much  better  than  we  know,  the 
solution  of  those  questions  that  we  are  endeavoring  ourselves  to  solve. 
They  have  reached  that  place  where  the  ear  is  indeed  open,  where 
the  dumb  tongue  is  indeed  unloosed,  and  their  interest  in  the  work 
here  is  not  lost  because  of  their  knowledge  of  the  work  beyond.  The 
work  is  all  one;  life  is  one.  This  is  but  the  ante-chamber  of  the  real 
life.  We  are  all  in  the  primary  school,  and  it  will  not  be  very  long 
until  we  shall  all  of  us  be  graduated  into  that  one  that  is  higher. 

One  of  our  American  poets  has  said: 

"There  is  no  death.     What  seems  so  is  transition. 
This  life  of  mortal  breath  is  but  the  suburb  of  the  life  elysian, 
Whose  portal  we  call  Death." 

Those  whom  we  shall  try  to  honor  to-day,  did  well  their  work. 
May  we  be  able  equally  well  to  perform  ours,  and  to  follow  on  in 
their  footsteps.  I  will  now  call  upon  the  Chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Necrology,  Professor  Job  Williams,  to  present  his  report. 

Mr.  Williams:  Prof.  E.  A.  Fay  will  read  the  notice  of  Miss  Annie 
E.  Bond. 

Professor  Fay:  This  notice  was  prepared  by  Miss  Ellen  Barton, 
who  asks  me  to  read  it. 

Miss  Annie  E.  Bond  was  born  in ,  in  the  year .     She 

entered  the  Horace  Mann  School  in  Boston  in  January,  1870.  She 
had  already  given  years  of  devotion  to  the  instruction  of  a  young 
lady,  a  confirmed  invalid,  who  was  both  deaf  and  blind.  Miss  Bond's 
character  was  a  rare  combination  of  both  sweetness  and  strength — a 
rich  outgrowth  of  native  talent  and  an  inheritance  from  one  of  Bos- 
ton's oldest  families.  Her  merits  as  a  teacher  were  of  a  high  order. 
Gentle  but  firm,  generous  but  just,  she  commanded  respect  and  in- 
spired devotion  to  an  extraordinary  degree  among  her  pupils,  and 
possessed  to  the  fullest  extent  the  confidence  of  her  associates.  She 
held  for  many  years  the  position  of  head  assistant,  sharing  in  a  pecu- 
liarly helpful  manner  the  arduous  duties  of  the  Principal,  and  from 
her  large  acquaintance  with  persons  of  culture  and  wealth  gained  for 
the  school  and  the  cause  many  valuable  friends.  Her  Christian  self- 
devotion  to  her  friends  was  evidenced  by  the  heroism  with  which  she 
bore  about  in  her  frail  form  for  years  the  seeds  of  death  without  call- 
ing for  sympathy  or  shadowing  the  lives  of  those  who  loved  her  best, 
with  the  knowledge  of  an  approaching  doom  which  was  early  revealed 
to  her. 

Her  sudden  death  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  large  circle  of  friends, 
and  an  inestimable  loss  to  the  school  to  which  she  had  given  four- 
teen years  of  the  best  years  of  mature  and  Christian  womanhood. 

Edward  Everett  Hale,  her  beloved  pastor  and  friend,  voiced  the 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  283 

sentiments  of  all  who  knew  her  when  over  her  casket  he  said  the 
world  was  better  for  her  having  lived. 

The  following  obituary  notices  were  then  read:  Joseph  H.  Tjams, 
of  Tennessee;  Adolphus  K.Martin,  of  Louisiana;  Madame  Victorine 
Bouche,  and  Harriet  E.  Coggeshall;  Benjamin  P.  McKinley,  Mi- 
Mary  A.  Ziegler,  J.  A.  McWorter,  Miss  Cornelia  Trask,  Miss  Katie 
Getty,  Miss  Jennie  C.  Cramer,  John  R.  Keep,  J.  D.  H.  Stewart,  and 
George  A.  Shoaf. 

Joseph  H.  Ijams  was  born  in  Rushville,  Ohio,  December  11,  1840, 
where  his  parents  had  lately  moved  from  Maryland.  During  the  con- 
nection of  his  brother,  Rev.  W.  E.  Ijams,  with  the  Iowa  institution, 
Mr.  Ijams  became  interested  in  the  cause  of  deaf-mute  education  and 
acquired  a  clear  and  graceful  use  of  the  sign  language.  He  was,  in 
turn,  a  teacher  in  the  Iowa  school  and  in  the  Columbia  institution  at 
Washington,  D.  C.  In  1866,  upon  the  reorganization  of  the  Tennessee 
school  for  the  deaf  and  dumb,  which  had  been  closed  during  the  war, 
Mr.  Ijams  was  chosen  to  take  charge  of  that  institution.  The  task 
before  him  was  no  easy  one.  The  buildings  and  grounds  having  been 
occupied  successively  by  the  contending  armies  for  hospital  purposes 
and  otherwise,  were  defaced  and  unsightly,  all  furniture  and  school 
appliances  were  destroyed  or  carried  away,  and  the  whereabouts 
of  former  pupils  or  other  deaf  children  unknown;  but  Mr.  Ijams 
went  at  the  work  before  him  with  an  enthusiasm  and  energy  rarely 
equaled,  and  soon  his  untiring  efforts,  seconded  by  a  wise  discretion, 
resulting  in  the  building  up  of  a  nourishing  and  well  ordered  school; 
the  whole  administration  of  which  was  alike  creditable  to  his  head 
and  heart.  Mr.  Ijams  possessed  rare  executive  ability,  and  while  he 
was  a  man  of  decision  and  firmness,  his  courtesy  and  kindness  toward 
pupils  and  assistants  made  it  a  pleasure  on  their  part  to  carry  out  his 
will. 

His  ability  and  gentlemanly  demeanor  won  for  him,  at  once,  the 
confidence  and  cooperation  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Tennessee 
school  and  they  heartily  supported  him  in  his  arduous  work.  To  the 
pupils  of  the  institution  he  was  a  kind  and  loving  father;  to  the  peo- 
ple among  whom  he  had  cast  his  lot  he  was  always  a  gentleman— a 
friend;  to  his  own  family  his  death  has  been  an  irreparable  loss.  After 
more  than  sixteen  years  of  faithful  service  to  the  State,  to  humanity, 
&nd  to  God,  he  fell  asleep  on  December  24, 1882.  It  may  truly  be  said 
that  he  rests  respected,  beloved,  and  lamented. 

Adolphus  Kerr  Martin  was  born  and  reared  in  Mississippi.  He 
received  a  classical  education,  studied  for  the  ministry,  and  devoted 
several  years  of  his  young  manhood  to  the  work  of  a  colporteur  and 
missionary  for  the  Presbyterian  Church,  in  the  remote  settlements  of 
the  Southwestern  States  and  Indian  Territory. 

In  1855  Mr.  Martin  was  elected  teacher  in  the  Missouri  Institution 
for  the  Education  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb.  Two  years  later  he  was 
called  to  the  Superintendency  of  the  Mississippi  institution,  which 
position  he  retained  until  1861,  when  he  took  charge  of  the  Louisiana 
institution.  Owing  to  disturbances  growing  out  of  the  civil  war  the 
school  was  closed  in  1862,  and  was  not  again  opened  for  four  years. 

During  this  time  Mr.  Martin  remained  at  Baton  Rouge,  taking  care 
of  the  buildings  and  grounds  of  the  institution.  He  then  returned 
to  his  former  home  in  Mississippi  and  engaged  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits until  called  again  in  1871  to  the  position  of  teacher  in  the 
Missouri  institution.     For  nine  years  he  labored  faithfully  and  sue- 


284  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

cessfully  in  the  class-room,  and  for  six  years  of  this  time  discharged 
the  additional  duties  of  Assistant  Superintendent. 

In  1880  Mr.  Martin  was  again  appointed  Superintendent  of  the 
Louisiana  institution.  Returning  to  his  former  field  of  labor,  he 
entered  upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties  with  great  zeal  and  with  a 
determination  to  bring  the  school  up  to  its  former  efficiency.  But  an 
insidious  disease  had  marked  him  for  its  victim,  and  in  less  than  two 
years  he  was  compelled  to  retire  from  the  vocation  which  had  en- 
gaged, almost  continuously,  twenty-seven  years  of  his  life. 

He  died  at  Natchez,  Mississippi,  in  the  autumn  of  1882,  surrounded 
by  near  relatives  and  sympathizing  friends.  His  sufferings  were 
prolonged,  and  at  times  were  very  great,  but  he  bore  them  all  with 
fortitude,  and  entered  into  his  heavenly  rest  with  the  calm  confidence 
and  blessed  hope  that  attends  the  dying  Christian. 

W.  S.  MARSHALL. 
July  21,  1886. 

Miss  Harriet  E.  Coggeshall,  the  subject  of  this  imperfect  sketch, 
was  born  at  her  father's  consulate  in  the  city  of  Quito.  His  death 
occurring  soon  afterward,  the  entire  charge  of  her  education  devolved 
upon  her  widowed  mother,  a  woman  of  marked  force  of  character. 
In  the  fall  of  1881,  Miss  Coggeshall  took  her  place  as  one  of  the 
younger  teachers  in  the  Ohio  institution,  to  fill  a  vacancy  in  the  oral 
department,  under  the  tutelage  and  advice  of  a  more  experienced 
associate.  In  this  somewhat  trying  field  of  duty,  she  labored  with 
more  than  average  success,  endearing  herself  by  her  gentle  and  win- 
ning bearing  to  pupils,  fellow  teachers,  and  officers  alike.  Always 
delicate  in  physique,  her  failing  health  compelled  her,  in  the  spring 
of  1883,  reluctantly  to  leave  her  post,  never  to  return.  Her  death,  at 
the  home  of  friends  in  a  neighboring  State,  followed  within  a  few 
weeks.  Success  not  being  measured  by  length  of  service,  in  the  early 
demise  of  Miss  Coggeshall  we  recognize  a  loss  to  the  profession  at 
large,  as  well  as  to  the  immediate  circle  which,  in  life,  she  graced. 

Benjamin  B.  McKinley  and  Mary  E.  Ziegler. — Since  the  last 
convention,  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  two  teachers  connected  with  the 
Pennsylvania  institution  in  Philadelphia,  Benj.  B.  McKinley  and 
Mary  E.  Ziegler,  have  passed  away. 

Mr.  McKinley,  at  the  time  of  his  death,  and  for  some  time  before 
it,  was  not  actively  connected  with  the  work,  having  been  retired  on 
account  of  feeble  health  in  1875.  In  his  retirement,  however,  he  con- 
tinued to  manifest  a  deep  interest  in  the  welfare  of  the  deaf,  among 
whom  he  had  lived  and  labored  for  upwards  of  forty  years,  and  made 
frequent  visits  to  the  institution  till  physical  infirmities  forbade  his 
venturing  out  of  his  room.  He  was  a  faithful  teacher,  a  devout 
Christian,  and  patriotic  citizen.  Mr.  McKinley  died  on  the  twenty- 
ninth  of  July,  1883. 

Miss  Mary  E.  Ziegler,  a  valued  teacher,  died  November  15,  1883,  at 
her  home  in  Carlisle,  Pennsylvania. 

The  following  sketch  of  her  life,  from  the  "Annals,"  January,  1884, 
was  prepared  by  Mr.  Henry  S.  Hitchcock,  one  of  her  associates: 

Miss  Ziegler  was  born  near  Carlisle,  February  7,  1852.  Her  ances- 
tors were  among  the  first  settlers  of  that  part  of  Pennsylvania.  She 
became  connected  with  the  Pennsylvania  Institution  for  the  Deaf 
and  Dumb,  as  teacher,  in  the  autumn  of  1875.    She  was  prepared  for 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  285 

the  general  work  of  teaching  at  the  State  Normal  School  at  Millers- 
ville,  Pennsylvania.  She  was  specially  fitted  for  the  work  of  instruct- 
ing deaf-mutes  by  having  two  deaf-mute  brothers,  to  whom  she  had 
devoted  much  attention  and  care.  In  this  way  she  had  become 
acquainted  with  the  sign  language  and  manual  alphabet,  and  had 
learned  to  sympathize  with  and  to  understand  the  nature  and  needs 
of  the  class  of  children  among  whom  she  was  called  to  work.  At  ii  rsi . 
like  other  young  teachers,  she  met  with  disappointments  and  failures. 
But  she  was  not  disheartened ;  she  bravely  determined  to  correct  her 
mistakes,  as  far  as  possible,  and  endeavor  to  reach  success.  After 
much  patient  toil  her  efforts  were  crowned  with  gratifying  success. 
Three  classes  were  under  her  instruction.  The  pupils  in  the  last  two 
were  remarkable  for  their  intelligence  and  correct  use  of  language. 
This  was  not  accomplished  by  the  use  of  any  novel  methods,  but  by 
the  persevering  and  careful  employment  of  methods  long  in  use  in 
this  institution.  She  pursued  a  natural,  systematic  method,  charac- 
terized by  great  simplicity.  Her  influence  upon  the  moral  nature 
and  deportment  of  her  pupils  was  good.  In  this  she  possessed  the 
advantages  of  a  commanding  presence  ana  dignified  demeanor  before 
her  class,  while  by  her  kindness,  firmness,  and  sympathy  she  won  the 
love,  respect,  and  confidence  of  her  pupils,  devoting  herself  sincerely 
and  earnestly  to  their  welfare,  and  attending  to  their  little  as  well  as 
important  wants  with  a  motherly  interest.  It  is  not  too  much  to  say 
that  she  was  thoroughly  devoted  to  the  work  for  which  she  sacrificed 
her  life.  She  entered  the  institution  apparently  in  robust  health, 
but  ere  long  over-exhaustion,  anxiety,  and  too  close  confinement  told 
on  her  constitution,  and  she  declined  in  health  until  it  became  quite 
broken  down.  Several  times  before  her  last  sickness  her  friends  felt 
anxious  about  her,  but  she  seemed  to  recover  fair  health,  and  was 
hopeful  of  recovery  almost  to  the  very  end  of  her  life. 

Miss  Ziegler  was  a  very  kind,  sincere,  and  sympathetic  friend.  To 
her  family  she  was  devotedly  attached,  an  affectionate  daughter  and 
a  kind  and  generous  sister.  Her  religious  character  was  quiet  and 
unobtrusive.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  a  sincere 
Christian,  and  we  trust  has  gone  to  receive  the  reward  promised  to 
those  who  are  faithful  to  the  end. 

John  Allen  McWhorter  was  born  in  Warsaw,  Wyoming  County, 
New  York,  September  15, 1833,  and  moved  to  Wisconsin  in  1850.  He 
entered  Beloit  College  at  the  age  of  nineteen  and  maintained  a  high 
standing  as  a  scholar  and  a  Christian  man  through  his  entire  course. 
At  the  age  of  twenty-three,  upon  the  suggestion  of  President  Chapin, 
of  Beloit  College,  he  became  a  teacher  of  the  deaf  in  Wisconsin,  and 
died  with  the  harness  on.  The  greater  part  of  his  work  was  in  Wis- 
consin, where  he  is  known  as  a  strong  and  vigorous  man,  thorough 
in  all  his  work.  He  was  a  good  sign  maker,  a  faithful,  earnest, 
successful  teacher,  and  a  true  friend  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  In  No- 
vember, 1869,  he  was  appointed  Superintendent  of  the  Louisiana 
institution,  in  Baton  Rouge,  and  to  this  school  he  devoted  some  of 
the  best  years  of  his  life.  His  fidelity  to  the  cause  of  deaf-mute  edu- 
cation in  Louisiana,  and  his  earnest,  energetic  efforts  in  that  State  to 
preserve  to  the  deaf  the  grounds  and  buildings  provided  for  them  by 
the  State,  no  one  at  the  north  can  adequately  appreciate.  Although 
his  efforts  proved  ineffectual,  he  still  watched  his  opportunities  to  aid 
the  cause,  and,  in  1880,  was  induced  to  accept  the  office  of  Principal 
of  the  Western  Pennsylvania  institution,  Turtle  Creek,  and  to  his 


286         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

work  there  brought  all  the  strength  and  wisdom  of  his  ripe  manhood, 
and  twenty-one  years  in  the  service  of  the  deaf. 

But  his  work  here  was  of  short  duration,  for,  January  14,  1883,  he 
died,  as  the  Christian  dieth,  full  of  hope,  and  in  the  bright  assurance 
of  a  glorious  resurrection. 

Mr.  McWhorter  was  no  ordinary  man  physically,  mentally,  or  mor- 
ally. He  was  strong,  sympathetic,  gentle,  and  above  all  that  was 
mean  or  trivial.  In  the  defense  of  what  he  deemed  right  he  was 
uncompromising.  Seeking  the  honor  of  God  and  the  welfare  of  man 
he  spared  not  self,  nor  yielded  to  the  wishes  of  those  from  whom  he 
differed.  His  record  is  written  in  golden  deeds,  pure  motives,  and 
heavenly  thoughts,  and  his  example  is  worthy  of  emulation. 

Miss  Cornelia  Trask. — Since  the  close  of  the  last  convention  two 
lady  teachers,  who  were  then  connected  with  the  Illinois  institution, 
have  laid  down  their  burdens  and  passed  on  to  the  better  land. 

Miss  Cornelia  Trask,  the  first. removed  by  death,  was  born  and  edu- 
cated in  Hartford,  Connecticut,  and  began  her  labors  as  an  instructor 
of  the  deaf  in  the  Indiana  institution  in  the  year  1856,  and  also  spent 
a  few  years  teaching  the  deaf  in  New  York,  and  in  Memphis,  Ten- 
nessee, coming  to  Illinois  in  the  year  1859.  Here  she  taught  for  a 
period  of  twenty-five  years,  where  her  life  work  was  performed. 

When  the  teaching  of  articulation  began  to  attract  notice  the  Illi- 
nois institution  was  among  the  first  of  the  older  American  schools  to 
take  up  that  branch  of  instruction,  and  Miss  Trask  was  appointed  to 
take  charge  of  the  new  department.  She  was  soon  sent  by  the  Illinois 
institution  to  Hartford  to  take  a  course  of  instruction  under  Prof. 
Graham  Bell.  Returning  to  Illinois,  she  entered  with  great  zeal, 
hope,  and  energy  her  new  field  of  labor,  from  which  remarkable 
results  soon  followed. 

Having  taught  for  several  years  by  the  sign  method,  in  the  use  of 
which  she  was  an  adept,  and  taking  into  account  her  later  and  varied 
experience,  she  was,  doubtless,  at  the  time  of  her  death,  without  a 
superior  in  the  practical  work  of  deaf-mute  instruction. 

Miss  Trask  possessed  a  keen  appreciation  of  the  relation  of  one 
method  to  another,  and  showed  wonderful  tact  in  using  each  in  its 
proper  place. 

Miss  Trask  was  a  woman  of  unusually  strong  and  upright  char- 
acter, of  a  cheerful  temperament,  and  a  consistent,  devoted  Christian. 
Her  death  occurred  November  22, 1883,  after  a  brief  illness.  Her  last 
hours  were  calm  and  peaceful,  as  she  bowed  with  perfect  resignation 
to  the  Divine  will.  In  her  death  the  mutes  of  Illinois  have  lost  a 
friend  and  benefactor. 

Miss  Kate  A.  Getty,  for  three  years  a  teacher  of  articulation  in 
the  Illinois  institution,  died  in  Jacksonville  on  the  twenty-fourth  of 
April,  1885. 

Miss  Getty  was  a  native  of  Genesee,  Illinois,  where  her  infancy  and 
girlhood  were  spent.  She  came  of  noted  parentage,  her  father's  rela- 
tives having  founded  the  now  historic  town  of  Gettysburg,  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  her  mother  being  related  to  the  family  of  General  Meade, 
the  commander  of  the  Union  forces  at  the  battle  of  Gettysburg. 

In  1882,  Miss  Getty  graduated  at  Wellesley  College,  Massachusetts, 
and,  being  desirous  of  employing  her  talents  to  some  useful  purpose, 
she  began  to  seek  a  field  of  labor.  Devotion  to  a  deaf  sister  led  her 
into  this  peculiar  work,  in  which  she  sacrificed  her  young  life.  As  a 
teacher  she  was  most  conscientious  and  untiring,  throwing  her  whole 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THK   DEAF.  287 

strength  into  her  work.  She  was  quick  in  acquiring  that  skill  so 
necessary  to  success,  and  possessed,  for  one  so  young,  excellent  judg- 
ment in  devising  ways  and  means  for  overcoming  difficulties  in  her 
special  line  of  work.  Miss  Getty  was  well  fitted  by  natural  gifts  and 
education  to  be  a  teacher  of  youth.  Modest  in  demeanor,  refined  in 
manner,  ever  alert  to  the  call  of  duty,  a  sincere  disciple  of  the  Master, 
she  cast  a  sweet  and  helpful  influence  on  pupils  and  associates. 

It  may  seem  sad  that  a  life  so  full  of  promise  should  be  extinguished 
in  early  womanhood,  yet  we  feel  assured  that  her  life,  though  short 
here,  was  not  in  vain,  for  it  may  be  said  of  her,  through  those  to  whom 
she  gave  speech,  "She,  being  dead,  yet  speaketh." 

After  an  illness  of  three  weeks,  her  gentle  spirit  passed  quietly 
away,  like  the  beautiful  star  on  the  "brow  of  night."  The  follow- 
ing day  the  mortal  part  of  Miss  Getty  was  conveyed  to  Sharon  Ceme- 
tery, near  Genesee,  and  laid  to  rest  by  the  grave  of  her  father. 

Miss  Jennie  Cramer. — The  Iowa  institution  sustained  a  severe  loss 
in  the  fall  of  1883,  by  the  death  of  one  of  the  lady  instructors,  Mi- 
Jennie  Cramer.  Miss  Cramer  was  a  semi-mute,  a  graduate  of  the 
Minnesota  school,  and  a  teacher  there  previous  to  her  connection 
with  the  Iowa  school.  She  was  a  lady  of  rare  sweetness  of  disposi- 
tion, a  successful  instructor,  an  unusually  clear  and  graceful  sign 
maker.  Her  influence  among  the  pupils  was  always  for  good.  When 
the  news  of  the  probable  speedy  and  fatal  termination  of  her  linger- 
ing illness— consumption — reached  the  Iowa  school,  it  saddened  all 
hearts.  But  the  thought  that  they  should  never  meet  her  on  earth 
again  was  tempered  by  the  comforting  assurance  that  her  spirit  had 
gone  where  it  would  continue  the  development  of  loveliness  begun 
in  this  life,  and  that  the  mourners  were  themselves  selfish  to  bewail 
their  own  loss,  when  it  was  compensated  by  her  great  gain. 

John  Robinson  Keep  was  born  in  Longmeadow,  Massachusetts, 
May  10,  1810.  He  was  the  son  of  a  farmer,  and  was  expected  to  re- 
main upon  the  farm,  but  he  desired  to  obtain  a  collegiate  education, 
and  entered  Yale  College  with  the  expectation  of  preparing  for  the 
ministry.  After  graduating  in  1834,  he  was  for  a  year  a  teacher  in 
the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  of  which  Dr.  H.  P. 
Peet  was  Principal.  The  two  following  years  were  spent  in  theolog- 
ical study,  and  he  decided  to  go  to  China  as  a  missionary,  but  an  acute 
inflammation  of  the  eyes  compelled  him  to  relinquish  this.  On  re- 
gaining a  measure  of  strength,  he  began  preaching  at  Union ville, 
Connecticut.  In  1842  he  was  installed  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
Church  in  Franklin,  Delaware  County,  New  York,  and  in  1844  he 
was  settled  in  Warren,  Connecticut,  where  he  remained  for  about 
seven  years,  when  an  attack  of  serious  illness  compelled  him  to  cease 
preaching.  In  the  fall  of  1852  Mr.  Keep  accepted  an  invitation  from 
Mr.  Collins  Stone,  then  Superintendent  of  the  Ohio  Institution  for 
the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  to  become  a  teacher  there;  but  in  the  autumn 
of  1854  he  became  a  teacher  in  the  American  Asylum  at  Hartford 
Connecticut,  and  remained  in  this  position  for  twenty-six  years  till 
in  1880  ill  health  caused  him  to  resign.  His  death  occurred  at  Hart 
ford  on  the  fifteenth  of  June,  1884. 

Mr.  Keep  was  possessed  of  sound  sense  and  good  judgment  Mis 
ready  wit,  knowledge  of  human  nature,  and  especially  his  genial  and 
sympathetic  disposition,  gave  him  success  in  dealing  with  men,  and 
no  less  with  children  and  pupils.  In  relation  to  his  fellow  men  he 
was  governed  by  a  fine  sense  of  justice  and  honor.    His  natural  cheer- 


288  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

fulness  and  his  faith  in  God  enabled  him  to  look  upon  the  bright  side. 
His  genial  and  spontaneous  humor  was  refreshing  and  pure  as  a 
mountain  rill.  His  quick  and  far-reaching  sympathy  was  often  ex- 
tended to  the  poor  and  needy. 

To  the  church  in  Hartford,  of  which  Mr.  Keep  was  an  office  bearer, 
his  death  was  a  great  loss,  for  he  was  one  of  its  founders,  and  his 
varied  and  unstinted  self-bestowal  was  of  unusual  help  to  the  pastor 
and  people. 

As  a  teacher  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  Mr.  Keep  was  enthusiastic, 
patient,  and  persevering.  He  had  a  tender  and  fatherly  interest  in 
his  pupils,  and  daily  carried  into  the  school-room  the  sunshine  of  his 
own  nature.  In  conducting  religious  services  he  was  fresh,  lucid,  and 
practical. 

Nor  were  Mr.  Keep's  services  to  the  deaf  limited  to  his  own  class  and 
his  own  institution.  His  communications  to  the  "Annals,"  though  not 
numerous,  were  quite  important,  and  his  participation  in  conventions 
was  profitable  to  all. 

Mr.  Keep  published  two  books.  One,  "  First  Lessons  for  the  Deaf 
and  Dumb,"  the  result  of  his  own  careful  experience  in  the  school- 
room, was  welcomed  at  home  and  abroad;  the  other,  entitled  "School 
Stories,"  was  designed  for  hearing  and  deaf  children  alike. 

To  know  him  was  a  privilege;  to  have  had  his  confidence  and 
friendship  is  a  constant  benediction. 

Madame  Victorinu;  Boucher,  who  died  in  April,  1883,  was  a  French 
Catholic  lady,  who  presided  over  the  St.  Joseph's  Institute  for  Deaf 
Mutes  at  Fordham,  New  York,  for  thirteen  years.  She  was  beloved 
by  teachers  and  pupils.  At  her  request,  no  biography  has  been  writ- 
ten. Madame  Boucher,  assisted  by  a  number  of  charitable  ladies, 
established  the  school  for  deaf-mutes  at  Fordham,  New  York,  in  the  fall 
of  1869.  Although  in  the  beginning  the  undertaking  had  to  struggle 
with  great  difficulties,  and  but  for  the  loans  advanced  by  friends  from 
time  to  time  would  have  sunk  under  the  weight  of  its  pecuniary  dif- 
ficulties, yet  before  her  death  she  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the 
institution  in  a  nourishing  condition,  with  a  branch  house  for  girls 
in  Brooklyn,  and  one  in  Throgg's  Neck,  New  York,  for  boys.  By  an 
Act  passed  by  the  Legislature  June  2,  1877,  it  was  placed  on  a  footing 
with  kindred  institutions  in  the  State. 

Roswell  H.  Kinney,  born  in  Oswego  County,  New  York,  April  29, 
1822,  died  suddenly  at  Austin,  Texas,  November  20, 1885.  A  graduate 
of  Hamilton  College,  New  York,  he  accepted  the  appointment  of 
teacher  in  1852  in  the  Ohio  Institution  for  Deaf-Mutes  at  Columbus, 
and  there  remained  from  1852  to  1863.  He  then  entered  upon  the  pio- 
neer task  of  organizing  and  administering  the  Minnesota  institution 
at  Faribault,  and  was  so  occupied  until  1866.  In  1867  he  resumed 
the  work  of  teaching  in  the  Ohio  institution,  and  so  continued  until 
his  acceptance  of  the  superintendency  of  the  Nebraska  institution  at 
Omaha  in  1871.  The  cares  and  responsibilities  of  this  office  he  sus- 
tained for  seven  years.  In  1880  he  had  charge  briefly  of  the  affairs 
of  the  Colorado  institution,  at  Colorado  Springs.  In  1881  he  was  ap- 
pointed Principal  of  the  Texas  institution  at  Austin,  and  so  contin- 
ued until  1835,  nearly  to  the  date  of  his  death  at  his  home  in  Austin, 
after  full  thirty  years  of  active  service.  He  was  a  man  of  great  earn- 
estness and  industry,  and  also  of  commanding  conscientious  princi- 
ple. He  loved  deaf-mutes,  and  was  laborious  and  self-sacrificing  in 
their  service.     He  availed  himself  of  all  opportunities  of  normal 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  289 

improvement,  and  sought  always,  abandoning  the  valueless  and  the 
worn,  to  be  in  the  front  rank  of  instructors  of  the  deaf. 

John  D.  H.  Stewart.— Among  the  specimen  work  of  pupils  em- 
bodied by  Superintendent  Stone  in  his  report  of  the  Ohio  institution 
for  the  year  1853  may  be  found  a  carefully  written  little  sketch  of 
John  Sobieski,  evidently  the  painstaking  production  of  one  congeni- 
tally  deaf,  and  signed  "J.  D.  H.  S.,  fifteen  years  of  age,  and  under 
instruction  five  years."  This  is  the  earliest  trace  accessible  to  the 
writer  of  this  brief  memoir  of  one  whose  death,  untimely  from  our 
human  point  of  view,  saddened  the  westward  progress  of  many  dele- 
gates to  the  Eleventh  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the 
Deaf— John  D.  H.  Stewart,  of  Ohio.  Among  the  earlier  graduates  of 
the  Ohio  institution  he  afforded  a  living  example  of  what  could  be 
accomplished  by  the  pioneer  instructors  of  deaf-mutes  in  this  coun- 
try when  their  efforts  were  seconded  by  conscientious  self-help  on  the 
part  of  the  pupil. 

As  a  student  and  as  a  teacher  Mr.  Stewart  was  notably  a  hard 
worker.  His  mind  was  one  not  contenting  itself  with  aught  short  of 
exact  knowledge,  exactly  expressed.  So  far  did  this  bent  carry  him 
that,  as  the  writer  well  remembers,  on  his  recall  to  institution  work 
as  an  instructor  by  Superintendent  Fay  in  1868,  Mr.  Stewart  had  to 
a  great  extent  lost  his  facility  in  signs  through  disuse,  obviously  pre- 
ferring dactylology  as  a  more  precise,  if  less  rapid,  vehicle  for  his 
thoughts.  He  soon  yielded  to  the  pressure  of  circumstances,  how- 
ever, and,  aiming  less  at  grace  of  pantomime  than  at  force  and 
directness  of  expression,  swift  and  energetic  sign  converse  became 
characteristic  with  him.  Ever  a  keen  and  careful  observer,  he  ex- 
celled in  portrayals  of  life  and  character.  Of  solid  build  physically, 
his  intellect  delighted  in  handling  solid  facts  and  impressing  them 
upon  the  minds  of  his  pupils;  always  ready  with  anecdote  or  narra- 
tive to  beguile  the  tedium  of  class-room  toil.  A  man  of  extensive 
reading,  and  possessing  to  a  degree  attained  by  few  of  the  congenitally 
deaf  in  our  country  a  ready  command  of  clear  and  idiomatic  English, 
his  self-acquired  knowledge  enabled  him  to  stand  shoulder  to  shoulder 
with  his  liberally  educated  coworkers. 

In  his  love  of  nature  and  research  after  fact  Mr.  Stewart  was  an 
enthusiast.  Indeed  to  this  trait  of  his  character  may  be  traced  the 
causes  hastening  his  death.  He  had  looked  forward  to  this  trip 
across  the  divide  in  pleasant  company  with  the  keenest  anticipations 
of  enjoyment.  Starting  in  his  eagerness  in  advance  of  the  main  body 
of  excursionists,  he  joined  them  when  well  en  route,  and  from  that 
time  on,  till  this  journey  of  a  day  and  his  life  pilgrimage  together 
reached  their  close,  he  was  among  the  foremost  in  every  sight-seeing 
enterprise.  Realizing  from  his  first  prostration  that  the  end  was 
very  near,  he  met  the  inevitable  with  Christian  fortitude,  and  while 
gratefully  accepting  the  ministrations  for  his  relief  so  freely,  and, 
alas!  so  unavailingly  rendered  by  his  friends  and  traveling  compan- 
ions, his  spirit  calmly  passed  beyond  that  greater  divide,  so  inscru- 
table and  yet  so  narrow,  that  separates  us  all  from  the  realities  of 
eternity. 

Occupying  as  he  did  a  field  peculiarly  his  own,  his  Alma  Mater 

cannot  but  feel  his  loss.     And  though  his  work  may  be  taken  up  by 

another,  linking  as  he  did  "things  old  and  new"  in  the  history  of  the 

Ohio  institution,  John  D.  H.  Stewart  may  justly  be  classed  among 

19d 


290         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

those  of  whom  it  may  truly  be  said,  "  We  shall  not  look  upon  their 
like  again." 

George  Anton  Shoaf. — July  twenty-first  will  be  remembered  by 
the  delegates  to  the  convention  at  Berkeley  as  the  closing  day  of  a 
brilliant  session.  On  that  day,  at  half-past  six  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, George  Anton  Shoaf,  a  delegate  accredited  to  the  convention, 
but  who  never  took  part  in  the  proceedings,  died.  Three  weeks 
before,  he  had  caught  a  cold  which  resulted  in  an  abscess  of  most 
aggravated  form.  It  was  his  hope  to  recover  in  time  to  grasp  once 
more  the  hands  of  the  old  friends  he  once  knew  at  the  New  York 
institution.  But  a  complication  that  baffled  medical  skill  set  in,  and 
the  fatal  moment  came. 

He  was  twenty-two  years  old,  having  been  born  in  Omaha,  Nebraska, 
in  1863.  At  the  age  of  seven  years  he  lost  his  hearing  through  scarlet 
fever.  In  his  case  we  see  one  of  those  fireside  heroisms  where  a 
mother  nurses  back  to  life  a  child  whom  doctors  have  given  up.  At 
eight  years  old  he  went  to  the  New  York  institution  and  stayed  two 
years  as  a  boarder  in  Dr.  Peet's  family.  His  parents  moving  to  Cali- 
fornia, he  entered  the  institution  there  in  1875.  Eventually  he  entered 
the  class  of  '86  at  the  State  University.  But  a  course  at  the  Univer- 
sity calls  for  an  indomitable  pluck  which  was  not  his,  and  he  began 
his  junior  year  only  to  give  up  the  course  for  a  position  at  the  insti- 
tution as  supervisor.  He  was  popular  among  both  the  boys  here  and 
the  students  there.  Up  to  the  time  of  his  death  he  belonged  to  the 
University  football  team  which  now  holds  the  State  championship 
flag.  Yet  the  young  man  with  broad  shoulders  and  biceps  like  a 
Samson,  was  summoned  before  his  time.  His  death,  in  the  flower  of 
his  youth  and  the  beginning  of  his  usefulness,  is  one  of  those  inscru- 
table providences  to  which  Ave  bow  in  humble  submission,  without 
seeking  to  know  the  reason  of  Him  who  doeth  all  things  well. 

Mr.  Williams:  Considering  the  circumstances  of  the  death  of  J. 
D.  H.  Stewart,  of  Ohio,  it  has  seemed  proper  to  offer  the  following 
resolution : 

In  view  of  the  sudden  and  untimely  death  of  Mr.  J.  D.  H.  Stewart,  at  Salt  L'ake  City, 
Utah,  July  12,  1886,  while  en  route  with  us  to  attend  this  convention — 

Resolved,  That  we  extend  to  his  bereaved  wife,  in  her  unspeakable  desolation  and  sorrow, 
our  tenderest  interest  and  sympathy. 

That  in  his  death  we  deplore  the  termination  of  a  life  eminent  in  its  success  and  use- 
fulness, and  in  its  unobtrusive  exhibition  of  the  best  traits  of  Christian  character. 

That  in  the  fatal  issue  of  his  sickness,  anticipated  by  him,  and  yet  not  feared,  we  recog- 
nize, humbly  and  submissively,  the  dark  cloud  ever  attendant  upon  human  frailty,  yet 
with  him  not  unlighted  by  the  bright  reverse  of  heavenly  hope. 

That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  transmitted  to  his  bereaved  wife  by  the  President  of 
this  convention. 

Dr.  I.  L.  Peet:  I  can  say  from  the  fullness  of  my  heart  that  Dr. 
William  Porter  rendered  a  very  great  service  to  the  New  York  insti- 
tution, by  taking  it  when  the  sanitary  conditions  were  imperfect,  and 
bringing  it  to  a  condition  in  which  there  was  no  public  institution 
in  the  city,  or  in  the  State,  which  was  superior  to,  if  equal  to  it.  He 
was  a  man  of  fine  personal  presence,  of  very  kind  heart,  very  sympa- 
thetic, and  inexorable  in  the  discharge  of  what  he  considered  his 
duty,  but  always  endeavoring  to  make  life  in  the  institution  pleasant 
to  the  pupils  and  to  the  teachers.  My  relations  with  him  were  of  the 
most  agreeable  character;  and,  whether  it  was  the  grace  of  God  in 
him,  or  in  me,  that  made  a  delightful  association  of  ten  years  in  the 
New  York  institution,  under  what  has  been  called  two  heads,  it  is 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  291 

certainly  the  case  that  that  institution  was  admirably  conducted,  so 
far  as  he  was  concerned,  in  every  respect,  and  that  I  was  enabled. 
through  the  association  with  him,  and  the  assistance  from  him,  to 
devote  myself  absolutely  and  entirely  to  the  important  work  of  teach- 
ing the  deaf  and  dumb.  He  was  there  ten  years  in  the  institution. 
He  completed  his  work  there  by  bringing  it  to  a  condition  of  remark- 
able excellence,  especially  in  a  sanitary  point  of  view.  We  had  no 
sickness  and  no  death  for  years  there,  and  every  one  connect*  < I  with 
the  institution  learned  to  feel  a  true  respect  and  regard  for  him.  I  !<• 
was  a  Christian,  a  gentleman  in  every  sense  of  the  term,  and  when 
he  finally  retired  from  the  institution  to  take  a  tour  in  Knrope. 
instead  of  regaining  the  health  which  had  begun  to  be  feeble,  he  lost 
it,  and  he  died  at  his  home  in  New  York  State,  mourned  by  all  who 
knew  him. 

The  following  obituary  notices  were  then  read:  Richard  S.  Storrs, 
William  B.  Swett,  William  D.  Cooke,  G.  E.  Gibson,  A.  B.  Lister,  Dr. 
Thomas  Maclntire,  and  R.  H.  Keeney. 

Richard  Salter  Storrs  was  born  at  Amherst,  Massachusetts,  Sep- 
tember 29,  1830,  and  died  at  Longmeadow,  Massachusetts,  August  31, 
1884.  Mr.  Storrs  was  graduated  at  Amherst  College  in  1852.  Descended 
from  a  long  line  of  ministers,  with  a  rich  inheritance  of  mental  and 
moral  qualities,  the  aim  of  his  life  had  been  to  prepare  himself  for  the 
Gospel  ministry.  The  condition  of  his  health  turning  him  from  that 
calling,  he  was  providentially  led,  through  his  sister's  infirmity,  to 
enter  the  profession  of  deaf-mute  instruction.  He  became  a  teacher  in 
the  American  Asylum,  at  Hartford,  in  1853.  In  1864  he  accepted  a  pro- 
fessorship in  the  National  Deaf-Mute  College  at  Washington,  and  for 
two  years  rendered  most  efficient  aid  to  its  young  President  in  putting 
the  college  on  a  solid  basis.  In  1866  he  returned  to  Hartford,  where, 
with  the  exception  of  the  two  years  above  mentioned,  his  whole  pro- 
fessional life  was  spent.  As  a  teacher,  Mr.  Storrs  had  no  superior  and 
few  equals.  He  loved  his  work,  and  threw  his  whole  soul  into  it. 
He  went  down  to  his  pupils,  took  them  by  the  hand,  and  gently  led 
them  over  the  rough  places  to  a  higher  plane.  Quick  to  apprehend 
their  difficulties,  his  fertility  in  expedients  and  readiness  of  inven- 
tion enabled  him  to  show  them  how  to  overcome  them.  Systematic 
in  everything,  he  always  knew  just  what  he  had  taught.  His  pupils 
were  led  step  by  step  from  the  easy  to  the  difficult,  and  all  the  while 
they  trod  upon  solid  ground.  They  did  not  see  the  paving  of  the 
way,  but  it  had  been  done  for  them  all  the  same,  and  they  walked 
securely.  He  inspired  in  them  love,  confidence,  admiration,  and  they 
followed  him  without 'reserve.  Full  of  wit  and  humor,  Mr.  Storrs 
gave  full  play  to  those  qualities  in  the  class-room,  yet  such  was  his 
dignity  that  no  pupil  dared  to  overstep  the  bounds  of  propriety.  Vig- 
orous and  clear  in  thought  himself,  he  cultivated  and  demanded  the 
same  qualities  in  his  pupils.  Lazy  or  slovenly  work  he  would  not 
brook.  Above  all,  he  strove  to  cultivate  Christian  manliness  and 
womanliness  in  his  pupils.  Mr.  Storrs  possessed  a  mind  of  rare  ana- 
lytical power,  which  worked  with  surprising  rapidity  and  grasped  as 
by  intuition  every  salient  point  of  a  question.  It  seized  upon  the 
broad,  general  principle  which  lay  at  the  foundation  of  any  subject, 
and  viewed  it  from  that  standpoint.  Conclusions  reached,  his  rare 
gift  of  language  enabled  him  to  state  with  remarkable  clearness  and 
force. 

In  the  death  of  Mr.  Storrs,  the  profession  lost  one  of  its  most  sue- 


292         PROCEEDINGS  OP  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

cessful  teachers,  one  of  its  most  broad  and  vigorous  thinkers,  one  of 
its  most  brilliant  lights. 

Rev.  Thomas  MacIntire,  Ph.D. — On  the  twenty-fifth  of  Septem- 
ber, 1885,  terminated  the  life  of  Rev.  Thomas  MacIntire,  a  man  well 
known  and  highly  honored  in  the  profession.  His  whole  life  was 
devoted  to  the  cause  of  deaf-mute  instruction.  So<m  after  the  com- 
pletion of  his  collegiate  course,  he  became  a  teacher  in  the  Ohio  insti- 
tution. 

While  teaching  there  he  pursued  a  course  of  theological  reading 
under  the  direction  of  Rev.  Dr.  Hoge,  with  a  view  to  the  ministry, 
which  course  he  completed  at  Princeton  Seminary.  After  an  absence 
of  one  year,  Mr.  MacIntire  returned  to  the  Ohio  institution,  and 
resumed  his  position  as  teacher,  which  position  he  occupied  till  he 
was,  in  1845,  appointed  Principal  of  the  Tennessee  institution,  then 
in  its  formative  stage.  After  five  years  of  arduous  labor,  "amid  hard- 
ships, trials,  and  discouragement,"  he  resigned  his  position  and 
returned  to  Ohio. 

In  1852,  Mr.  MacIntire  went  to  the  Indiana  institution  as  teacher, 
and  very  soon  after  became  its  Superintendent,  upon  the  retirement 
of  Mr.  James  S.  Brown.  This  position  he  filled  most  honorably  and 
acceptably  until  1879,  when  he  was  displaced  through  political  influ- 
ences. 

He  was  immediately  afterward  appointed  Principal  of  the  Michi- 
gan institution,  which  place  he  held  for  three  years,  resigning  in  the 
year  1882. 

In  1883,  upon  the  retirement  of  John  A.  McWhorter  from  the  West- 
ern Pennsylvania  school,  Mr.  MacIntire  was  appointed  his  successor, 
and  continued  in  charge  till  compelled  to  retire,  from  ill  health. 

His  death,  which  occurred  soon  after,  was  the  result  of  physical 
and  nervous  prostration,  following  the  arduous  duties  devolving  upon 
him  in  the  removal  and  reestablishment  of  a  new  school,  where  he 
was  required  to  perform  duties  and  assume  responsibilities  sufficient 
to  impair  the  energies  of  a  much  younger  man. 

It  was  the  good  fortune  of  the  writer  to  be  the  life-long  friend  of 
Mr.  MacIntire,  and,  for  many  years,  his  colaborer  in  the  Indiana 
institution,  and  he  can  most  abundantly  testify  as  to  the  sterling 
qualities  of  the  deceased,  as  Superintendent,  and  to  his  character  as 
an  honorable  and  Christian  man. 

William  B.  Swett,  the  founder  and  Superintendent  of  the  New 
England  Industrial  School  for  Deaf-Mutes,  located  at  Beverly,  Massa- 
chusetts, was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  haying  been  born  in  the 
town  of  Henniker,  of  that  State.  After  completing  a  course  in  the 
Hartford,  Connecticut,  institution,  he  learned  nearly  all  sorts  of  trades, 
which  proved  of  great  service  to  him  in  his  future  life-work.  Once 
he  published  an  interesting  book,  called  "  The  Adventures  of  a  Deaf 
Mute  in  the  White  Mountains,"  which  passed  through  several  edi- 
tions. In  1879  he  established  the  school  above  mentioned,  from  a 
desire  to  establish  a  system  which  should  not  only  educate  the  mind, 
but  also  train  the  hand.  His  labors  were,  however,  not  completed  at 
the  time  of  his  death,  March  25, 1884.  Struck  down  with  paralysis  in 
the  midst  of  his  usefulness,  his  death  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  infant 
school.  The  Trustees  took  hold  of  the  management  with  a  determina- 
tion to  follow  his  plans.  At  present  it  bids  fair  to  become  a  credit  to 
its  founder.  After  six  years  of  patient  waiting,  the  noble  work  of  this 
deaf-mute  Superintendent  has  been  recently  recognized  by  the  Com- 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  293 

monwealth  of  Massachusetts,  and  receives  an  appropriation  of  two 
thousand  dollars.  It  has  made  a  beginning,  and  will,  under  n  smiling 
Providence,  grow  to  be  a  lasting  monument  of  the  genius  and  inde- 
fatigable patience  of  William  B.  Swett. 

William  Dewey  Cooke  was  born  May  27,  1811%in  Vermont,  and 
educated  at  Middlebury  College.  After  graduating  be  obtained  a 
position  as  teacher  in  the  valley  of  Virginia.  He  was  married  in 
Staunton,  October  2,  1834,  and  died  there  May  20,  1885. 

During  his  residence  in  Staunton  an  institution  for  deaf-mutes  and 
the  blind  was  there  established.  The  many  accomplishments  of  Mr. 
Cooke  rendered  it  easy  for  him  to  secure  a  position  in  the  institution. 
He  became  an  expert  in  the  use  of  the  sign  language,  and  perl  in  p- 
had  no  superior  among  the  speaking  teachers  of  the  United  States. 
Once  in  possession  of  this  accomplishment,  the  field  was  open  to  him 
for  the  employment  of  his  literary,  scientific,  and  mechanical  knowl- 
edge (in  all  of  which  he  was  weil  versed),  for  the  benefit  of  the  deaf 
and  the  blind. 

There  was  no  institution  at  that  time  in  Raleigh,  North  Carolina. 
After  much  deliberation  Mr.  Cooke  determined  to  visit  the  State  and 
examine  the  field  for  himself.  He  soon  won  his  way  to  the  hearts  of 
many  influential  citizens,  and  by  them  he  was  encouraged  to  make  a 
tour  of  the  State  to  plead  the  cause  of  the  deaf  and  the  blind.  Bia 
expedition  was  attended  wTith  brilliant  success,  and  such  men  as  Gov- 
ernors Morehead,  Swain,  Graham,  Manly,  Reid,  and  Bragg  were  cor- 
dially committed  to  the  new  and  benevolent  undertaking.  A  State 
institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  and  blind  was  in  due  time  estab- 
lished at  Raleigh,  and  Mr.  Cooke  was  appointed  Principal. 

Mr.  Cooke  continued  to  occupy  this  important  post  until  1860,  when 
he  resigned  to  accept  a  similar  position  in  the  deaf  and  dumb  insti- 
tution at  Cave  Springs,  Georgia.  During  the  war  he  resided  for  some 
time  in  Richmond,  and  acted  as  publishing  agent  of  the  South  Pres- 
byterian Church.  He  was  afterwards  Principal  of  the  Maryland 
Deaf-Mute  Institute,  but  retired  in  1870,  and  returned  to  Staunton, 
where  he  again  took  up  the  work  of  teaching  the  deaf  and  dumb,  until 
an  affection  of  the  lungs  led  to  a  cessation  of  his  professional  work. 
True  to  his  principles,  even  in  retirement,  he  continued  his  produc- 
tive industry,  until  death  itself  caused  the  implements  to  drop  from 
his  hands. 

Thus  passed  awray  a  life  of  wonderful  energy  and  devotion  to  the 
great  ends  of  Christian  charity.  Few,  even  of  those  gifted  pioneers 
in  the  education  of  the  deaf,  have  established  a  higher  claim  to  dis- 
tinction as  promoters  to  the  cause  of  special  instruction.  His  breth- 
ren in  the  same  field  will  doubtless  cherish  his  memory,  emulate  his 
zeal  and  skill,  and  perpetuate  the  influence  of  his  example. 

Albert  E.  Listek,  died  at  his  father's  residence  in  Panola  County, 
Texas,  July  3,  1885,  aged  thirty-two  years.  He  entered  as  a  pupil  the 
Texas  Deaf  and  Dumb  Institute  about  the  year  1869.  Because  of  his 
reliability  and  good  influence  over  the  boys  he  was  early  appointed 
supervisor,  which  office  he  filled  most  acceptably.  Owing  to  necessity 
arising  in  the  school,  and  before  he  had  completed  the  curriculum,  he 
was  called  to  the  office  of  teacher,  which  office  he  filled  from  the  year 
1879  to  the  date  of  his  death.  Though  of  limited  scholastic  training, 
he  proved  to  be  a  successful  teacher  in  the  primary  department  of  the 
school.  % 

Mr.  Lister  had  all  the  elements  of  a  real  manhood;  he  was  true, 


294  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

just,  generous,  positive  in  his  opinions,  and  conscientious  in  render- 
ing to  all  that  earnest  service  which  his  relations  demanded.  The 
institution  in  all  its  parts  felt  the  happy  influence  of  his  connection. 
The  officers  in  charge  felt  that  in  him  they  had  a  helper  in  promoting 
and  maintaining  the  moral  healthfulness  of  the  institution;  the  teach- 
ers were  assured  that  in  him  they  had  a  fellow  laborer  without  guile; 
the  pupils  recognized  him  as  a  true  friend,  ready  to  bear  their  burdens 
and  help  them  in  mental  conquests.  All  officers,  teachers,  pupils,  and 
employes  loved  him,  and  now  mourn  him  as  dead.  Such  a  character 
commands  respect  and  love.  In  the  death  of  such  a  man  the  world 
loses  that  which  is  above  price. 

Gideon  E.  Gibson  was  born  in  Iredell  County,  North  Carolina,  on 
the  thirtieth  day  of  October,  1860,  and  at  the  age  of  about  ten  years 
was  admitted  into  the  North  Carolina  Institute  for  the  Deaf  and 
Dumb  and  the  Blind.  Possessed  of  qualities  usually  found  in  good 
and  bright  scholars,  he  made  very  creditable  progress  in  his  studies, 
and  promised  to  be  one  of  the  brighest  ornaments  of  the  deaf  com- 
munity. Good  natured,  generally  humorous,  and  fond  of  fun,  he 
endeared  himself  to  many,  and  was  popular  wherever  he  went.  He 
was,  as  his  father  called  him,  "the  idol  of  his  home  folks."  Upon 
the  completion  of  his  eight  years'  course  of  study  he  was  appointed 
supervisor.  His  amiable  disposition  and  good  sense  made  the  per- 
formance of  his  duties  in  that  capacity  easy  and  successful.  He  also 
assisted  in  the  instruction  of  a  class  of  beginners.  The  next  term  he 
was  promoted  to  the  position  of  teacher  of  a  primary  class.  His 
success  in  this  new  field  of  labor  was  such  as  soon  won  him  the  praise 
of  many  and  gave  an  earnest  of  great  usefulness.  But  his  career  was 
indeed  a  short  one.  When  he  left  the  institute  in  1881  for  his  home, 
the  conviction  forced  itself  upon  every  one  that  we  should  never 
grasp  his  hand  again  on  earth.  He  had  been  suffering  from  repeated 
hemorrhages  from  the  lungs.  His  struggle  to  free  himself  from  the 
clutches  of  that  terrible  disease,  consumption,  and  at  the  same  time 
to  perform  his  duties  as  teacher,  had  excited  the  deep  sympathy  of 
his  many  friends.  While  at  home,  during  the  vacation  of  '81,  he 
gradually  grew  weaker,  and  was  compelled  to  resign  his  position  as 
teacher  in  the  institution.  As  the  winter  months  approached  it  was 
evident  to  all  that  he  was  rapidly  passing  away.  He  was  perfectly 
resigned  to  his  Master's  will,  and  longed  to  depart  and  be  with  Jesus 
whom  he  had  tried  to  serve  faithfully.  February  21, 1882,  was  a  very 
bright  morning,  but  he  watched  the  clock  and  told  his  friends  who 
stood  around  him,  that  he  would  expire  before  ten  o'clock  p.  m.  He 
talked  much — had  a  glimpse  of  heaven — was  perfectly  conscious  all 
the  time.  True  to  his  words  he  drew  his  last  breath  just  before  ten 
o'clock.  Such  was  the  close  of  a  young  life,  rich  in  promise  of  in- 
creasing usefulness  and  success  in  teaching  the  deaf. 

Dr.  Thomas  Gallaudet:  I  can  only  recall  the  memory  of  one  of  the 
most  painstaking,  upright  men  I  have  ever  met  with.  Dr.  Peet  could 
give  more  details  of  his  early  life,  but  I  remember  him  as  a  pupil  of 
the  New  York  institution  in  1845.  He  was  noticed  at  that  time  as 
being  remarkable  for  his  compositions  in  the  school-room,  on  occa- 
sions of  public  exhibition,  etc.  His  productions  were  all  looked  for 
with  interest.  In  due  time  he  was  chosen  a  teacher  in  the  Deleyan 
institution,  and  remained  there  for  a  number  of  years.  He  married 
one  of  our  deaf-mute  ladies  in  New  York,  Eleanor  Langlois,  and  both 
of  them  being  of  a  frugal  and  economical  turn,  they  both  taught  in 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF*.  295 

the  institution,  and  from  their  earnings  they  had  a  very  comfortable 
home.  I  remember  visiting  them  and  seeing  them  with  their  two 
sons  growing  up,  and  living  in  a  most  enjoyable  way. 

I  believe  that  Mr.  McCoy  was  always  very  highly  esteemed  in  the 
Wisconsin  institution,  and  there  developed  a  Christian  character 
which  was  looked  upon  as  an  example  by  all  who  knew  him.  I  have 
heard  of  him  in  various  ways  in  life's  journey,  as  being  one  of  those 
who  had  devoted  himself  conscientiously  to  the  duties  of  that  state  of 
life  into  which  it  pleased  God  to  call  him.  He  was  a  deaf-mute  him- 
self, a  graduate  of  the  New  York  institution. 

The  following  obituary  notices  were  then  read:  Miss  Etta  P. 
McWhorter,  P.  W.  Downing,  and  Miss  S.  I.  Cuddy. 

Miss  Etta  P.  McWhorter  died  at  her  mother's  home  in  Albert 
Lea,  Minnesota,  in  February,  1886.  She  was  the  daughter  of  J.  A. 
McWhorter,  who  was,  for  many  years,  well  known  and  esteemed  by 
the  profession  as  a  teacher  and  Superintendent.  After  her  father's 
death  she  accepted  a  position  as  teacher  of  articulation  in  the  Min- 
nesota school,  where  she  labored  faithfully  and  efficiently  for  two 
years.  Ill  health  compelled  her  to  resign  in  1885.  After  a  season  of 
rest  and  recuperation,  she  went  to  Washington  Territory,  and  was 
associated  with  Mr.  McFarland  in  the  beginning  of  a  school  there. 
But  her  health  again  broke  down  and  she  returned  to  her  mother's 
home,  where,  tended  by  loving  hands,  she  awaited  with  patience  and 
Christian  resignation  the  coming  of  the  final  summons. 

P.  W.  Downing.— While  the  Committee  on  Necrology  at  the  Elev- 
enth Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the.  Deaf  was  preparing 
its  report,  one  more  name  was  added  to  the  already  alarming  list, 
that  of  Pindar  W.  Downing,  who  died  in  Chicago,  Illinois,  during  the 
session  of  the  convention.  Mr.  Downing  had  spent  all  his  life  among 
the  deaf,  having  been  brought  up  in  one  of  the  Great  Britain  schools, 
and  having  taken  up  the  work  of  a  teacher  at  the  early  age  of  eight- 
een. As  a  matter  of  course  he  was  familiar  with  the  peculiar  pro- 
cesses of  the  minds  of  the  deaf,  as  well  as  perfectly  at  home  in  the 
sign  language,  and  able  to  make  clear  to  his  pupils  whatever  called 
for  explanation  in  less  time  than  those  whose  advantages  in  this  line 
had  not  equaled  his  own.  By  nature  he  was  kind-hearted  and  gen- 
erous; too  free-handed,  if  anything,  for  his  own  good;  always  willing 
to  discommode  himself  to  oblige  a  friend.  Having  weak  lungs,  and 
seeking  change  of  climate,  he  was  connected  at  various  times  with 
the  Nova  Scotia,  New  York,  Minnesota,  Colorado,  Iowa,  and  Texas 
schools.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  a  proper  attention  to  his  physical 
condition,  in  the  way  of  checking  a  tendency  to  irregular  habits, 
might  have  gone  far  to  counteract  his  natural  weakness;  but,  like 
many  others  of  the  same  class,  this  attention  was  not  given  in  due 
season  by  himself,  nor  could  he  be  induced,  for  any  considerable 
length  of  time,  to  second  by  his  own  efforts  the  endeavors  in  this 
line  of  those  who  had  his  truest  welfare  at  heart.  His  friends— and 
they  could  be  found  wherever  he  had  lived— though  unwilling  blindly 
to  follow  the  old  motto,  "nil  mort.  nis.  bon.,"  will  all  join  in  the  other, 
'" Requiescat  in  pace."  ",       ,      _     1#J         -      ,, 

The  death  of  Miss  S.  I.  Cuddy,  of  the  Nebraska  Institute  for  the 
Deaf  and  Dumb,  on  the  seventeenth  of  May  last,  was  the  first  breach 
in  our  corps  of  teachers  since  the  institute  was  founded.  Miss  fcadie 
I  Cuddy  was  born  in  Cumberland  County,  Pennsylvania,  in  the  year 
1853,  and  died  at  Omaha,  Nebraska,  May  17,  1886.    She  was  engaged 


296  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

in  the  work  of  deaf-mute  education  seven  years.  She  served  six  years 
in  the  Western  Pennsylvania  institution,  the  latter  part  of  the  time 
under  the  lamented  Thomas  Maclntire,  whom  she  counted  among  her 
warm  personal  friends.  The  last  year  of  her  life  was  spent  in  the 
Nebraska  institute.  As  a  teacher  she  was  able,  kind,  and  conscien- 
tious. She  was  pleasing  in  her  manners,  social  and  mild  in  disposi- 
tion, in  character  Christian.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  and  died  in  the  hope  of  Him  who  doeth  all  things  well. 

President  Gillett:  This  certainly  is  a  most  formidable  array  of 
our  friends,  brethren,  and  sisters  who  have  passed  on  before  us 
within  the  last  four  years,  to  prepare,  or  assist  our  Lord  in  preparing, 
the  mansions  which  He  has  gone  to  prepare  for  us.  He  tells  us  that 
we  shall  be  like  Him.  If  we  are  to  be  like  Him,  we  shall  do  as  He 
does.  Those  friends,  certainly,  are  doing  as  He  does;  and  we  have 
the  delightful  consolation,  in  the  midst  of  this  melancholy  service,  of 
knowing  that  they  are  engaged  with  Him  in  making  preparations  for 
us  when  our  time  shall  come  to  pass  on.  My  heart  has  been  filled 
with  unspeakable  emotions  this  afternoon,  as  I  have  run  back  over 
the  last  thirty-three  years,  since  the  time  I  sat  first  in  the  convention 
with  some  of  those  who  have  been  mentioned  here  to-day.  I  knew 
most  all  of  them ;  all  of  them  were  my  friends,  and  one  of  them  was 
my  preceptor;  and  another  was  to  me  a  sister,  and  another  was  as  a 
child.  I  shall  never  forget  the  scene  when  Miss  Cuddy  called  me  to 
her  bedside  and  said,  "I  am  not  afraid  to  go,  and  I  want  you  to  be 
careful  for  nothing;  but  with  prayer  and  thanksgiving,  make  your 
requests  known  unto  God;  and  the  peace  of  God,  which  passeth  all 
understanding,  shall  keep  your  heart  and  mine  through  Christ 
Jesus,"  and  soon  passed  away. 

I  must  not  indulge  this  afternoon  in  the  remarks  that  would  come 
flowing  from  a  sad  and  full  heart.  It  was  moved  that  we  defer  dis- 
cussion until  after  these  notices  had  been  read.  I  think,  certainly, 
our  feeling  is  rather  not  to  engage  in  discussion  any  further  this  after- 
noon ;  but  as  soon  as  we  may,  out  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  these 
departed  ones,  adjourn.  We,  however,  see  hanging  upon  the  wall 
here  the  portrait  of  him  who  introduced  this  work  into  our  country. 
We  are  all  aware  that  a  movement  is  now  being  made  to  erect  a  suit- 
able monument  to  his  memory.  I  think  it  would  be  very  fitting  and 
proper  that  we  take  some  recognition  of  the  fact  at  this  particular 
time.  And  I  understand  that  some  resolutions  have  been  prepared 
looking  to  that  end,  and  that  they  are  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Crouter, 
and  with  your  consent  I  will  ask  him  to  read  them. 

Mr.  Wilkinson:  It  is  my  sad  duty  to  add  another  name  to  this 
long  list  that  has  been  read  this  afternoon.  George  A.  Shoaf  died 
this  morning  at  six  o'clock.  He  occupied  an  humble  position  in  this 
institution — that  of  supervisor.  But  from  the  papers  read  this  morn- 
ing, and  from  experience  of  our  Superintendents,  we  all  know  how 
important  that  office  is.  I  shall  not  take  up  time  giving  any  bio- 
graphical sketch,  or  speak  now  of  the  virtues  of  the  young  man  who 
has  so  suddenly  passed  away.  But  I  would  offer  a  resolution  that  his 
associates  and  deaf  friends,  Mr.  D'Estrella,  Mr.  Til  den,  and  Mr. 
Grady,  be  appointed  a  committee  to  prepare  a  biographical  sketch  or 
notice  of  Mr.  Shoaf,  and,  if  not  completed  before  the  close  of  this 
convention,  that  it  be  incorporated  in  the  proceedings  of  the  conven- 
tion. 

This  motion  was  seconded  and  carried. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  297 

Mr.  Crouter  then  read  the  following  resolution : 

Mr.  President:  I  desire  to  call  the  attention  of  the  members  of  the  convention  for  a 
short  time  to  a  subject  that  has  attracted  much  notice  and  int.  [ally  among  the 

deaf,  during  the  past  year.    I  feel  that  this  convention  will  not  have  fulfilled  it- 
duty,  or  completed  its  labors  here,  if  it  adjourn  without  taking  some  action  upon  the 
ject.    1  refer,  Mr.  President,  to  the  contemplated  monument  to  be  erected  to  the  memory 
of  the  elder  Gallaudet,  in  Washington,  for  the  prosecution  of  which  work  i'un<l-  are 
being  collected  in  many  parts  of  the  country.    It  is  a  worthy  project— one  that  ought   to 
be  dear  to  every  friend  of  good  and  philanthropic  effort.    Thus  far  the  labor  of  .-oil. 
funds  has  been  carried  on.  mostly  by  the  deaf,  with  encouraging  results,  some  f  MXX)  hav- 
ing been  raised,  but  I  feel  that  the  time  has  come  when  we,  a.-  officers  and  Instn* 
should  give  some  united  aid  and  encouragement  toward  the  successful  prosecution  < 
work.    1  would,  therefore,  Mr.  President,  offer,  with  reference  to  this  matter,  the  follow- 
ing resolutions,  which  I  feel  assured  will  be  approved  by  the  members  of  this  convention 
without  a  single  dissenting  voice,  that: 

Whereas,  The  Rev.  Thomas  H.  Gallaudet,  in  founding  the  American  Asylum  at  Hart- 
ford, Connecticut,  began  a  work  that  has  revolutionized  the  condition  of  the  de 
America,  that  has  elevated  them  as  a  class,  and  brought  them  from  a  condition  of  dark- 
ness to  that  of  enlightened  manhood;  and  whereas,  his  work  and  worth  commend  him, 
not  only  to  every  deaf-mute  in  the  land,  and  to  all  engaged  in  their  elevation,  but  to  all 
mankind  as  well;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  in  no  way  can  we  testify  to  our  reverence  for  the  memory  of  Thomas  H. 
Gallaudet,  and  to  our  appreciation  of  his  labors,  than  by  a  hearty,  generous  Cooperation 
in  the  efforts  now  being  made  to  collect  funds  for  the  erection  of  a  fitting  memorial  I 
life  and  work;  be  it 

Resolved,  That  it  is  the  sense  of  this  convention  as  a  whole,  and  of  its  members  as  indi- 
viduals, that  every  effort  should  be  made  to  increase  this  fund  and  make  it  one  commen- 
surate with  the  object  in  view;  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  Principals  and  Superintendents  of  institutions  here  assembled  be 
earnestly  enjoined  to  influence,  in  so  far  as  they  can,  their  respective  Boards  of  Directors 
and  Trustees,  and  the  officers,  teachers,  and  pupils  of  their  schools,  to  contribute  liberally, 
and  in  a  manner  becoming  the  importance  of  the  object  in  view,  to  the  Gallaudet  memo- 
rial fund;  be  it 

Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  sent  to  every  institution  and  school  for  the 
deaf  in  the  United  States  and  Canada. 

This  resolution  was  unanimously  adopted. 

Mr.  Noyes:  I  presume  nearly  all  of  the  members,  if  not  all,  are 
aware  of  the  fact  that  there  is  a  special  effort  about  to  be  made  in 
England  with  reference  to  the  unfortunate  or  dependent  classes. 
That  commission  has  been  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  condition  of 
these  classes,  both  in  their  own  country,  and  also  as  to  what  is  being 
done  in  the  United  States.  I  believe  the  President  of  the  college  at 
Washington  has  been  invited  to  meet  with  that  commission  to  give 
them  information  concerning  the  work  in  this  country.  And  it 
appears  to  me  that  it  is  proper  for  this  body  to  give  our  word  of  en- 
couragement and  sympathy,  and  to  commend  to  that  body  so  honor- 
able a  gentleman  as  the  President  of  the  college  at  Washington.  And 
in  consideration  of  that,  I  submit  the  following  for  the  consideration 
and  approval  of  this  convention: 

The  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf,  meeting  in  California  July  15  to 
21  1886  sends  cordial  greeting  to  the  Royal  Commission  to  Inquire  into  the  Education  of 
the  Blind  and  of  the  Deaf  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,  and  begs  leave  to  express  the 
hope  that  the  labors  of  the  commission  may  result  in  great  and  lasting  benefit  to  the 
cause  of  education  for  special  classes  in  the  British  Empire.  . 

The  convention  learns  with  pleasure  that  the  Royal  Commission  has  invited  Dr.  K.M. 
Gallaudet,  President  of  the  National  Deaf  Mute  College,  and  Chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  this  convention,  to  give  information  concerning  the  education  of  the  deaf 
in  the  United  States ;  and  the  convention  takes  this  occasion  to  commend  President  Oal- 
laudet  to  the  Royal  Commission  as  one  who  possesses,  in  the  highest  degree,  the  respect, 
confidence,  and  esteem  of  all  American  instructors  of  the  deaf. 

This  resolution,  being  seconded,  was  carried  unanimously. 
Dr.  Peet:  Some  resolution  should  be  passed  expressive  of  the  gen- 
eral sentiments  of  this  convention,  and  I  suppose  that  among  the 


298  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

other  information  which  Dr.  Gallaudet  will  convey  to  the  Royal  Com- 
mission, will  be  these  resolutions.  I  will  offer  the  following  resolu- 
tion, which  I  think  may  be  of  benefit  to  others  in  the  convention,  of 
the  sentiment  of  this  convention  : 

Resolved,  That  in  the  opinion  of  this  convention,  instruction  in  art  is  of  special  impor- 
tance in  the  instruction  of  the  deaf,  as  without  its  guiding  and  developing  influence  the 
peculiar  tendency  of  the  deaf-mute's  mind  to  think  in  pictures  cannot  be  taken  advantage 
of,  to  place  him  on  that  plane  in  life  to  which  he  is  best  adapted,  nor  can  that  superiority 
in  handicraft  of  whatever  kind  which  he  is  capable  of  attaining  be  placed  within  his 
grasp. 

This  resolution,  being  seconded,  was  unanimously  adopted. 

Mr.  Crouter:  The  Executive  Committee  report  that  a  recess  be 
taken  to-morrow  morning  and  afternoon,  and  that  a  session  be  held 
to-morrow  evening  at  half-past  seven  o'clock.  At  that  time  a  lecture 
will  be  given  before  the  convention  by  Theodore  A.  Lord,  Esq.,  on 
the  "Samoan  Islands;"  to  be  followed  by  closing  exercises. 

Here  the  convention  adjourned  until  to-morrow  (Wednesday)  even- 
ing, at  half-past  seven  o'clock. 


WEDNESDAY  EVENING,  JULY  21,  1886. 

Mr.  Crouter  in  the  chair. 

The  Chairman:  The  next  subject  to  be  considered  is  "Aural 
Work,"  by  Mr.  Gillespie,  of  Nebraska. 

Mr.  Gillespie:  As  we  understand  it,  our  object  in  meeting  together, 
is  to  discuss  the  different  methods  and  systems  of  teaching  the  deaf 
and  dumb.  The  methods  practiced  in  the  sign  schools,  the  methods 
practiced  in  the  articulation  schools,  and  in  both  schools,  and  in 
every  conceivable  form,  have  been  discussed  in  this  connection.  Now 
the  last  feature  seems  to  be  one  that  takes  in  the  cultivation  of  hear- 
ing as  well  as  that  of  speech.  In  a  paper  presented  by  my  friend  from 
Pennsylvania,  the  deaf  are  classified  into  three  divisions,  or  subclasses, 
and  he  teaches  them  in  two  divisions,  as  I  understand  it;  the  congen- 
itally  deaf  in  one  division,  and  the  semi-mute  and  the  semi-deaf  in 
another  division.  I  agree  with  Mr.  Crouter  in  that  particular.  We 
have  practiced  that  method  in  our  own  school  for  the  last  two  or  three 
years  of  dividing  the  classes,  and  of  teaching  the  semi-deaf  with  the 
semi-mute  aurally. 

Now,  I  will  go  one  step  further  than  Mr.  Crouter  does,  and  will 
divide  that  class,  teaching  them  separately — the  congenitally  deaf, 
the  semi-mute,  and  the  semi-deaf,  making  in  all  three  distinct  divis- 
ions taught  by  three  distinct  methods!  The  methods  which  will 
apply  to  the  semi-deaf  will  not  apply  to  the  semi-mute.  In  the  semi- 
mute  we  have  a  boy  or  girl  without  hearing,  and  our  object  is  to 
bring  out  and  cultivate  this  dormant  sense.  I  presented  a  paper  at 
the  last  conference  or  articulation  convention  in  New  York,  and  very 
nearly  the  same  paper  was  printed  in  the  "Annals,"  and  what  I  had 
to  say  I  said  at  those  times.  On  the  present  occasion  I  shall  let  others 
speak  through  me. 

I  prepared  a  list  of  questions  and  submitted  them  to  the  Superin- 
tendents of  the  institutions,  and  I  have  received  replies  from  thirty- 
five  of  them.    The  inquiries  had  in  view  the  number  of  semi-deaf  in 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OP   THE   DEAF.  299 

the  schools,  the  tests  made  during  the  last  year,  the  number  taught 
wholly  aurally,  and  I  will  present  a  few  of  these  statistics  for  your 
consideration. 

The  first  question  was,  "Has  there  been  a  general  test  of  the  hear- 
mg  made  in  your  school  ?"  Out  of  the  thirty -five  institution-  heard 
from  twenty-two  answered  in  the  affirmative. 

The  second  question  is,  "How  many  have  you  found  with  sufficient 
hearing  to  distinguish  vowel  sounds?"  The  answer  from  those 
twenty-two  institutions  is  eighty. 

The  next  question  is,  "How  many  have  been  taught  wholly 
aurally?"  The  answer  to  that  is  thirty-five.  That  includes  our  own 
institution. 

The  next  question  is,  "How  many  are  taught  both  aurally  and 
orally?"  By  this  question  I  meant  to  bring  out  how  many  were 
taught  with  a  view  to  cultivating  the  hearing.  Whether  the  Super- 
intendents all  answered  it  in  that  way  I  cannot  say,  but  I  think  they 
did.    The  answer  is  three  hundred  and  ninety-nine. 

"  How  many  were  taught  aurally  previous  to  the  year  1885?"  The 
answer  is  fifty-three. 

The  question  is,  "What  is  aural  teaching?"  In  a  previous  article 
I  have  put  the  figures  at  fifteen  per  cent  of  our  children  at  school 
that  have  sufficient  hearing,  though  dormant,  to  be  developed.  And 
of  that  number  the  majority,  I  claim,  could  be  graduated  as  hard  of 
hearing  and  speaking  people,  instead  of  deaf-mutes.  And  by  neglect- 
ing this  training  they  would  be  graduated  as  deaf-mutes.  Our  object 
is  to  bring  them  just  as  near  to  speaking  people  as  it  is  possible  to  do. 
My  experience  has  convinced  me  that  fifteen  per  cent  is  not  too  low 
an  estimate.  What  we  have  done  in  the  last  two  years  is  just  to  carry 
on  the  work  as  represented  before.  Quite  a  number  of  the  teachers 
here  present  will  recollect  the  convention  in  New  York,  in  which  a 
full  description  was  given,  and  I  will  not  go  into  that  now.  In  the 
first  place,  before  I  go  further,  I  will  say  that  we  had  prepared  a 
number  of  object  lessons,  and  our  aural  teacher,  Miss  Plum,  was  to 
be  here,  and  started,  but  owing  to  sea-sickness  on  the  desert  she  was 
obliged  to  stop  at  Colorado  Springs,  to  my  regret  and  inconvenience. 
She  has  prepared  papers  since  we  left  Colorado  Springs,  and  for- 
warded them  to  me,  and  some  of  them  I  will  read. 

I  will  first  read  Miss  Plum's  paper,  though  I  do  not  say  that  I  shall 
absolutely  indorse  everything  that  she  would  say: 

a  year's  work. 

At  the  opening  of  this  work  it  may  be  well  to  define  what  the  aural 
method  means  to  us.  It  is  educating  the  brain  to  use  the  hearing  so 
that  speech  may  be  gained.  A  speaking  child  enters  school  knowing 
words  by  sound  and  soul.  He  needs  to  be  taught  the  sight  of  all 
ordinary  ones  and  becomes  possessed  at  once  of  the  key  that  unlocks 
to  him  the  temple  of  knowledge. 

Our  pupils  come  to  us  with  nothing  but  powers  waiting  to  be  devel- 
oped. It  is  the  work  of  the  aural  teacher  to  cultivate  these,  which 
are,  the  hearing,  the  mind,  and  the  voice.  How  we  have  done  this, 
it  is  the  object  of  this  paper  to  show. 

Trying  to  come  as  near  nature  as  possible,  we  have  used  what  may 
be  called  a  "  natural  method."  Taking  a  picture  dictionary  the  child 
looked  over  it  until  a  familiar  object  was  found  whose  name  was 


300  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

easy  to  reach.  This  was  pronounced  in  his  ear  "  bee."  His  first  effort 
at  imitation  resulted  only  in  the  enunciation  of  the  vowel,  but  we 
were  thankful  that  his  hearing  had  so  caught  the  word  that  he  knew 
what  was  meant  when  it  was  again  spoken. 

Following  this  plan  with  a  few  nouns  and  the  pronoun  "  I,"  the 
verb  "see"  was  given  and  for  "busy  work"  the  class  wrote: 

I  see  a  bee. 

I  see  a  door. 

I  see  a  boy. 

I  see  a  cat. 

I  see  a  pin. 

As  soon  as  the  word  was  recognized  by  the  ear  and  spoken,  it  was 
written  for  the  class  to  copy.  Work  like  the  preceding  occupied  the 
first  month  of  school  and  with  the  second  month  the  word  "have" 
was  introduced. 

One  of  the  little  girls  had  a  breastpin,  which  was  not  the  happy 
condition  of  the  rest,  and  she  was  taught  to  say: 

"I  have  a  pin,"  while  the  others  said,  "I  have  no  pin." 

Pointing  to  my  mouth  I  questioned  them  as  to  their  possessions  in 
that  line — yes,  they  each  had  a  mouth  but  did  not  know  what  to  call 
it.  Having  heard  its  name  they  could  triumphantly  say,  "  I  have 
mouth,"  which  was  changed  to,  "I  have  one  mouth." 

Now  this  word,  as  all  others,  was  learned  through  the  hearing,  and 
when  spoken  in  the  trumpet  every  finger  and  voice  gave  indication 
that  it  was  understood.  There  is  some  difficulty  with  words  that  are 
like.  They  look  alike  on  the  lips,  but,  in  time,  even  the  slightest 
shades  of  difference  in  sound  are  distinguished. 

From  the  mouth,  we  proceeded  to  other  parts  of  the  body  and  there 
began  our  arithmetic.    The  little  ones  said  : 

I  have  one  mouth. 

I  have  one  nose. 

I  have  one  neck. 

I  have  one  tongue. 

I  have  one  chin. 

I  have  two  ears. 

I  have  two  eyes. 

I  have  two  arms. 

I  have  two  hands. 

I  have  two  lips. 

I  have  two  cheeks. 

I  have  two  toes. 

Frequently  they  had  spelling  exercises,  and  wrote  and  spoke  the 
words  given  in  their  ears  or  through  the  trumpets. 

Before  leaving  this  point  they  were  taught  my  name  and  the  word 

"has."    The  verb  came  in  by  merely  saying:  "Miss have  one 

mouth."    No;  "Miss has  one  mouth." 

Now,  the  names  of  the  class  were  learned  and  exercises  with  the 
verb  in  the  third  person  were  used,  as — 

John  has  two  eyes. 

Mamie  has  two  ears. 

With  the  pronoun  "you"  came  several  new  words,  as — 

A  dress. 

A  black  dress. 

Two  shoes. 

A  white  apron. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF   THE   DEAF.  301 

Here  the  verb  "is"  (which  can  only  be  taught  by  its  use)  was  neces- 
sary. With  this  verb,  the  pronouns  "my"  and  "your,"  and  the  pos- 
sessive case  of  the  nouns,  we  made — 

My  dress  is  black. 

Mamie's  dress  is  blue. 

Ernest's  hair  is  brown. 

Your  hair  is  black. 

My  eyes  are  blue. 

Color  lessons  were  given  by  matching  different  colors  of  paper  with 
any  articles  in  sight,  as — 

The  paper  is  red. 

Fannie's  dress  is  red. 

Your  ribbon  is  red. 

The  book  is  red. 
And  so  on,  until  they  were  familiar  with  the  most  pronounced  colors. 

At  this  time  they  began  to  write  descriptions  of  one  another.  A 
note-book  gives  us  this: 

Mamie  Hall  is  fat. 

She  has  blue  eyes. 

She  has  yellow  hair. 

She  has  a  red  dress. 

She  has  a  white  apron. 

Her  shoes  are  black. 

She  has  a  gold  pin. 

She  is  pretty. 

For  question  work  we  gave  sentences  in  this  form: 

John's  eyes  are . 

Eddie  has hair. 

Nettie  has  a  — —  dress. 

apron  is  white. 

During  this  time  there  has  been  a  daily  exercise  in  action  work. 
Performing  the  action  I  say,  "I  ran,"  then  command,  "John,  run." 
The  class  say,  "John  ran,"  while  he  writes.  "I  ran."  In  easy  actions 
we  have  used  "  ran."  "walked,"  "hopped,"  "danced,"  "opened,"  "shut," 
" sat,"  "  washed,"  "  held,"  "folded ,"  "  laughed,"  " cried,"  etc., giving  the 
command  in  the  present  tense  and  having  it  spoken  in  the  past,  when 
finished.  I  say,  "  Fold  your  arms;"  obeying,  the  child  says, "  I  folded 
my  arms,"  or,  all  obeying,  say,  "  We  folded  our  arms,"  "  You  folded 
your  arms." 

Now  they  had  some  questions  in  a  written  form,  as — 

What  did  you  fold? 

Who  marched? 

Who  held  the  coat? 

Who  opened  her  mouth? 

Again  were  given  object  lessons.  With  the  picture  of  a  cow  in 
view  they  tell  me — 

"The  cow  has  feet;"  but  I  write, 

"  The  cow  has  hoofs,"  and  they  see  the  difference  of  the  name.  Now 
with  the  written  form  of  "How  many?"  I  ask — 

How  many  hoofs  has  a  cow? 

How  many  horns  has  a  cow? 

How  many  eyes  has  a  cow? 

How  many  legs  has  a  cow? 

We  have  a  set  of  Prang's  Natural  History  Cards,  and  have  used  for 
this  class  the  cow,  horse,,  sheep,  dog,  deer,  eagle,  duck,  all  of  which 
they  learned  to  describe  as  stated. 


302  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

Using  Appleton's  Reading  Chart  we  have  found  ample  scope  for 
teaching  names,  prepositions,  and  action  words.  This  has  been  quite 
written  up  in  the  Auralist,"  but  may  bear  repetition  here.  The 
picture  used  in  our  examination  was  a  farmyard  scene,  and  had  been 
taught  thus:  The  names  of  every  object,  then — 

Where  is  the  man? 

What  is  he  doing? 

What  is  on  the  fence? 

How  many  chickens  do  you  see? 

Where  is  the  water? 

Where  is  one  little  chicken? 

Answered — 

The  man  is  near  the  fence. 

He  is  walking. 

A  bird  is  on  the  fence. 

I  see  eight  chickens. 

The  water  is  in  a  pan. 

One  little  chicken  is  in  the  water. 

Thus  we  go  on  just  as  other  teachers,  except  that  we  give  words  to 
the  hearing  as  well  as  to  the  lips  and  mind.  Our  pupils  do  not  learn 
more  than  do  others — perhaps  not  much — but  they  feel  they  have 
a  hold  on  the  world  that  their  less  fortunate  schoolmates  have  not. 
In  one  year  we  have  used  rive  hundred  and  ninety-two  words,  includ- 
ing those  used  for  arithmetic,  which  were  the  numbers  from  1  to  20, 
applied  in  all  sorts  of  "  examples." 

Now,  this  is  an  outline  of  the  year's  work.  The  child  sees  an  object, 
hears  and  speaks  its  name,  and  then  learns  its  written  form.  Thus 
he  gains  what  signs  and  articulation  would  teach  him,  but  best  of  all 
has  power  to  hear  what  he  has  learned. 

Let  us  have  more  of  it. 

Mk.  Gillespie:  Now  I  will  read  a  paper  from  Prof.  E.  R.  Currier. 

A  METHOD  OF  AURAL  INSTRUCTION,  SUGGESTED  BY  EXPERIMENTS  FOR 
THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  HEARING,  AT  THE  NEW  YORK  INSTITUTION 
FOR   THE   INSTRUCTION   OF   THE   DEAF   AND   DUMB. 

"All  method  is  a  rational  progress, 
A  progress  toward  an  end." 

The  recognized  systems  of  instruction,  by  means  of  which  the 
deaf  and  dumb  of  the  present  time  are  brought  out  from  the  narrow 
confines  of  a  solitary,  soundless  existence,  in  which  their  infirmity 
has  placed  them,  are  the  results  of  unwearied  labor  and  exhaustive 
experiment,  for  more  than  a  century,  on  the  part  of  their  instructors, 
who,  actuated  by  a  single  desire,  that  of  placing  this  class  of  defec- 
tives upon  the  social  plane  occupied  by  their  hearing  brothers,  have, 
by  patient,  philosophic,  and  prayerful  persistence,  so  nearly  obliterated 
the  barriers  which  surround  the  unfortunate  condition  of  living  that 
deafness  imposes. 

A  retrospective  contemplation  of  these  philanthropic  endeavors 
reveals  to  us,  that,  although  very  much  has  been  accomplished,  since 
the  educational  necessities  have  been  so  thoroughly  provided  for  that 
there  can  no  longer  be  a  reasonable  doubt  in  regard  to  the  surest 
methods  by  which  the  deaf  shall  be  taught  the  existence  of  a  Supreme 
Being  and  their  relation  to  Him;  the  duties  they  owe  to  their  country 
and  to  their  fellow  men;  something  more  remains  to  be  done  before 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OP  THE   DEA  !■'.  303 

we  can  assert  that  the  goal  has  been  attained.  Our  future  investiga- 
tion and  endeavor  must  furnish  a  satisfactory  solution  of,  at  the  low- 
est estimate,  two  important  and  pressing  problems:  How  can  we  give 
to  the  deaf  the  ability  to  communicate  with  greater  accuracy  and  to 
receive  communication  with  greater  ease  from  the  world  at  large? 
And,  how  and  to  what  proportion  of  this  class  can  we,  by  aural  devel- 
opment, give  available  hearing? 

To  the  latter  question,  I  shall  ask  attention,  in  the  hope  that  an 
increased  interest  may  be  awakened,  which  shall  be  productive  of 
benefit  to  at  least  a  portion  of  the  deaf  now  under  instruction  in  the 
institutions  of  America,  it  having  already  been  ascertained  that  there 
are  in  every  school  for  this  class  a  number,  larger  or  smaller,  who  are 
enabled  by  the  use  of  some  form  of  instrument  to  perceive  voice 
sounds;  and  also,  because  some  study  has  been  directed  to  the  possi- 
bility of  bringing  those  possessing  a  remnant  of  hearing,  to  such  a 
condition  that  they  can  readily  comprehend  our  language  when 
addressed  to  the  ear.  Hearing  may  be  defined  as  that  perception  of 
the  mind  by  which,  through  the  mechanism  of  the  ear,  a  knowledge 
of  the  vibratory  motions  of  bodies,  which  constitute  sounds,  is 
obtained.  In  its  normal  condition,  the  external  ear  collects  the 
sound  waves  and  reflects  them  upon  the  membrane  of  the  tympanum ; 
this  membrane  then  facilitates  their  transmission  to  the  chain  of 
small  bones  in  the  tympanic  cavity,  or  middle  ear;  to  the  walls  of 
this  cavity  and  to  the  air  it  contains;  thence  to  the  oval  window,  from 
which  the  vibrations  are  communicated  to  the  fluid  of  the  labyrinth, 
or  inner  ear,  until  finally  they  are  received  by  the  filaments  of  the 
auditory  nerve,  by  which  the  sensation  is  imparted  to  the  brain. 

In  using  the  phrase  "aural  development,"  we  of  the  New  York 
institution  have  in  mind  the  systematic  training  of  an  ear  in  abnor- 
mal condition  to  perform,  with  the  aid  of  mechanical  contrivance, 
the  operations  just  described.  The  defective  -ear,  as  found  in  the  so 
called  deaf  and  dumb  child,  either  from  pre-  or  post-natal  changes, 
is  incapacitated  for  the  transmission  of  sounds  per  se,  and  the  func- 
tional action  intended  by  nature  can  only  be  secured,  if  at  all,  by  the 
employment  of  artificial  aids.  Qualified  by  instrumental  assistance 
to  perceive  sounds,  the  condition  of  the  acoustic  mechanism  of  this 
class  of  children  for  practical  audition,  then,  is  not  widely  different 
from  that  of  the  hearing  child  at  the  age  when  he  begins  to  attach 
significance  to  sounds.  It  must,  therefore,  be  susceptible  to  the  same 
influences,  because  the  existing  abnormality  has  thus,  in  a  great 
measure,  been  compensated  for.  It  becomes  evident,  then,  that  the 
affording  an  opportunity  for  such  ears  to  become  acquainted  with  all 
classes  of  sounds  will  secure,  not  only  a  gradual  realization  and  ap- 
preciation of  their  different  values,  but,  at  the  same  time,  will  tend 
to  arouse  to  life  and  action  the  heretofore  dormant  vocal  organs, 
owing  to  the  fact  that  the  comprehension  of  sounds  addressed  to  the 
ear  always  stimulates  as  well  as  facilitates  the  inclination  to  imitate 
them.  Endeavors  in  this  direction  on  the  part  of  the  pupils  under 
my  instruction  at  the  New  York  institution,  prompted  a  series  of 
experiments  that  resulted  in  the  perfecting  of  a  duplex  ear-piece,  by 
means  of  which  two  conversational  tubes  are  united,  making  it  prac- 
ticable for  the  pupil  to  hear  what  is  said  to  him,  and  also  enabling 
him,  in  hearing  the  tones  of  his  own  voice,  to  compare  his  enuncia- 
tion with  that  of  his  instructor,  thereby  securing  the  reproduction  of 
vocal  sounds  with  greater  clearness  and  precision  than  had  before 


304  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

been  possible.  The  weakness  of  utterance,  however,  in  many  of  the 
cases,  where  a  slight  degree  of  hearing  had  been  discovered,  pre- 
vented the  employment  of  the  conversational  tubes  already  known 
for  voice  culture,  as  their  conductive  power,  when  used  by  the  pupil, 
was  found  to  be  insufficient  to  affect  his  auditory  apparatus.  To 
overcome  this  defect,  I  designed  the  conico-cylindrical  tube,  which  is 
acknowledged  to  be  the  most  powerful  conductor  of  the  human  voice 
yet  perfected.  Uniting  this  tube  and  the  American  conical  tube  by 
means  of  the  duplex  ear-piece,  a  thoroughly  useful  and  practical 
instrument  has  been  secured,  and  the  invaluable  aid  of  the  ear  has 
thus  been  brought  to  assist  in  the  development  of  the  voice.  The 
favorable  results  attending  these  efforts  to  secure  an  increase  of  the 
hearing  faculty,  so  far  as  relates  to  the  comprehension  of  spoken  lan- 
guage, seem  a  sufficient  warranty  for  a  brief  presentation  to  your  con- 
sideration of  my  method  of  procedure. 

Begin  by  accustoming  the  ear  to  interpret  the  sounds  of  the  short 
vowels  and  their  modifications  combined  with  the  consonants,  for  the 
reason  that  a  very  large  proportion  of  the  syllables  in  the  English  lan- 
guage have  the  short  vowel  sounds,  and,  also,  because  the  first  efforts 
required  to  master  the  pronunciation  of  our  language  are  facilitated 
by  a  limited  number  of  easy  rules. 

The  class  being  furnished  with  the  double  instrument  before  de- 
scribed, write  a  sentence  on  the  large  slates,  one  in  which  short  "a" 
only  is  required;  for  example:  "That  cat  ran  at  that  rat."  Placing 
the  ear  tubes  firmly  in  the  external  meatus,  speak  the  sentence  slowly, 
a  word  at  a  time,  into  the  bells  of  the  smaller  tubes,  gathered  in  a 
cluster  and  grasped  by  the  hands  of  the  teacher,  while  the  bells  of 
the  larger  ones  are  held  by  the  pupils  opposite  their  mouths,  and 
require  each  pupil  to  repeat  the  words  after  you,  as  near  as  it  may  be 
possible  for  him.  Next  repeat  the  entire  sentence,  and  urge  the  pupil 
to  attempt  it  in  the  same  way  without  assistance. 

In  this  connection  I  would  remark  that  the  pupil  should  be  allowed 
to  observe  the  lips  of  his  teacher,  in  order  that  he  may  the  more  readily 
imitate  the  required  sounds.  If,  however,  this  watching  proves  insuf- 
ficient, his  attention  should  be  directed  to  the  proper  placing  of  the 
vocal  organs  for  the  production  of  such  sounds.  Do  not  expect  or 
demand  perfection.  Approximation  is  sufficient  at  first.  You  will 
dishearten,  discourage,  and  depress  if  you  criticise  too  closely.  Bear 
in  mind  also  that  the  child  possessing  normal  hearing  requires  years 
of  practice,  and  that  under  the  most  favorable  circumstances,  to  secure 
correctness  of  enunciation.  Recall  the  recitations  of  "  Mother  Goose  " 
and  kindred  rhymes  by  your  own  little  friends;  recitations  in  which 
scarcely  a  word  would  be  spoken  with  sufficient  distinctness  to  be 
understood  by  yourself,  but  which  the  fond  mother  and  proud  father 
followed  with  ease  and  interpreted  for  your  benefit.  Should  our  hear- 
ing pupils  be  treated  with  less  consideration? 

Take  up,  seriatim,  the  sounds  composing  the  words  in  the  sentence: 
"Th-a-t  (that)  k-a-t  (cat)  r-a-n  (ran)  a-t  (at)  th-a-t  (that)  r-a-t  (rat)," 
combining  the  aid  of  both  eye  and  ear.  In  this  way  you  will  do  bet- 
ter than  "kill  two  birds  with  one  stone;"  you  will  kill  three — lip 
reading,  hearing,  and  articulation. 

As  soon  as  short  "a"  is  mastered,  take  short  "e,"  as  in  "pen;"  short 
"i,"  as  in  "pin;"  short  "o,"  as  in  "not;"  short  "u,"  as  in  "nut;"  and 
develop  them  in  the  same  way. 

Whenever  it  happens  that  the  pupils  are  acquainted  with  the  sounds 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  305 

of  all  the  letters  in  any  sentence  presented  to  them,  they  should  be 
required  to  read  that  sentence  without  making  the  analysis.  Such 
practice  will,  provided  they  are  conversant  with  the  meaning  of  what 
has  been  written,  cause  them  to  make  sound  and  satisfactory  progress. 

Take  up  the  long  vowels  in  the  same  manner,  and,  when  you  have 
completed  them,  you  will  not  only  have  laid  a  good  foundation,  on 
which  can  be  placed  the  superstructure  without  uncertainty  as  to 
results,  but  you  will  have  also  increased  and  quickened  the  ability  to 
perceive  and  comprehend  sound. 

The  marked  unwillingness  of  deaf  persons  to  use,  outside  the  class- 
room or  home  circle,  any  instrument  that  attracts  the  attention  of 
strangers  will,  in  my  opinion,  prove  the  greatest  obstacle  in  the  way 
of  securing  that  culmination  which  would  otherwise  be  assured  by 
any  thorough  and  systematic  course  of  aural  instruction. 

Mr.  Gillespie:  I  have  a  letter  from  Professor  Dobyns,  of  the 
Mississippi  institution,  which  I  will  read: 

Office  of  the  Superintendent  of  the  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  I)i 

Jackson,  Mississippi,  July  0,  1886.  J 

Mr.  J.  A.  Gillespie,  California  Institution: 

My  Dear  Sir:  I  am  sorry  not  to  be  able  to  attend  the  convention,  for  several  reasons, 
and  one  is  that  I  might  bear  a  personal  testimony  to  the  "aural "  work  done  in  our  insti- 
tution during  the  last  few  years.  I  am  satisfied  that  this  branch  of  our  work  is  growing 
in  efficiency  as  the  members  of  our  profession  become  interested  and  appreciate  it. 

During  the  past  year  we  have  given  an  hour's  instruction  daily  to  a  class  of  ten.  Five 
■of  this  number  could  not,  at  first,  distinguish  vowel  sounds,  but  by  long  and  patient  prac- 
tice can  readily  do  so  now,  and  also  words  and  sentences.  One  pupil,  who  has  been  under 
instruction  for  ten  years,  can  understand  what  is  said  at  a  distance  of  two  feet  without 
the  aid  of  an  ear  tube.  We  find  the  degree  of  proficiency  of  their  hearing  varies,  one  day 
being  more  acute  than  another.  We  attribute  this  to  the  state  of  their  health,  or,  possi- 
bly, atmospheric  influences. 

We  have  a  class  of  four  who  are  taught  altogether  without  signs,  and  I  find  the  hearing 
of  the  four  has  been  much  improved  during  the  past  year.  Those  who  can  hear,  or  dis- 
tinguish any  sound  with  the  ear  trumpet,  I  intend  to  practice  constantly  and,  if  possible, 
develop  their  hearing  so  they  can  take  their  places  in  the  regular  "  aural  class." 

Miss  McGann,  our  efficient  and  successful  teacher  of  articulation,  says :  "I  have  taken 
great  interest  in  the  aural  class,  and  am  positive  it  will  repay  a  teacher  to  undertake  this 
lately  discovered  but  valuable  branch  of  education." 

I  want  to  assure  you  that  I  regard  the  aural  work  of  much  importance,  and  I  am  satis- 
fied that  every  institution  has  a  sufficient  number  whose  hearing  (or  ability  to  distinguish 
sounds)  could  be  sufficiently  improved  to  make  an  interesting  class. 

Hoping  you  may  continue  to  arouse  interest  and  enthusiasm  in  this  good  work,  I  am, 
Yours  truly, 

J.  R.  DOBYNS,  Superintendent. 

Mr.  Gillespie:  Prof.  Weston  Jenkins,  of  New  Jersey,  will  read  a 
paper  by  Professor  Gordon,  of  Washington: 

The  Columbia  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  ) 
Kendall  Green,  near  Washington,  D.  C,  July  6, 1886.         ) 
My  Dear  Professor  Gillespie  : 

In  this  institution  a  record  was  made  of  ninety-six  cases  tested  with  the  audiometer 
used  by  Professor  Clark  in  New  York.  The  full  record  includes  age,  cause  of  deafness, 
color  of  eyes,  hair,  complexion,  and  audiometer  reading  for  each  ear.  The  following  is 
the  summary  for  the  "best"  ear: 

Between  25  and  30.. +5 

Between  30  and  35. - tl 

Between  35  and  50 tO 

Between  50  and  55 H 

At  55 - - tl 


Doubtful - -7 

Below  5 5 

Between  5  and  10  ._. 4 

Between  10  and  15 25 

Between  15  and  20 *16 

Between  20  and  25 t5 


*Half  of  this  group  of  sixteen  might  be  rejected  safely  at  once;  the  other  half  would 
require  a  long  course  of  systematic  exercises  to  determine  the  possibilities  in  each  case. 


t  Certainly  possess  an  utilizable  degree  of  hearing. 

20d 


306  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

As  I  understand  Mr.  Denison,  the  Principal  of  the  Kendall  School,  has  furnished  you 
detailed  information  concerning  the  aural  work  here,  it  is  only  necessary  for  me  to  reaf- 
firm my  conviction  as  to  the  inestimable  value  of  this  branch  of  our  work  to  a  considera- 
ble number  of  our  wards. 

A  young  man  leaving  college  this  year  is  perhaps  deserving  of  mention,  as  a  peculiar 
case.  He  became  deaf  at  the  age  of  two  and  one  half  years,  and  was  educated  in  the  Illi- 
nois institution  and  the  college.  By  the  audiometer  the  register  of  the  right  ear  was 
naught,  the  left  ear  seventeen.  He  could  whistle  certain  tunes  with  approximate  correct- 
ness, and  imitate  whistled  sounds;  he  could  also  play  tunes  upon  a  jewsharp.  Experi- 
ment indicated  that  he  could  often  recognize  the  repetition  of  the  same  words,  and  in 
some  cases,  elements;  but  he  had  no  mental  perception  of  speech,  through  the  sensation 
of  hearing.  Now,  the  audiometer  record  of  this  young  man  does  not  fall  far  below  the 
"worst"  ear  of  a  very  deaf  gentleman  who  is  a  recognized  authority  upon  the  sounds  of 
the  English  language.  This  gentleman's  record  is  twenty  for  the  right  ear  and  seventeen 
and  one  half  for  the  left. 

Yours,  truly, 

J.   C.  GORDON. 

A  Member:  What  is  normal  hearing. 

Prof.  F.  D.  Clark:  There  is  no  such  thing  as  normal  hearing. 
You  can  draw  a  complete  gradation  from  the  most  acute  hearing  to 
absolute  deafness,  and  can  put  your  finger  at  any  place  in  the  line, 
and  say  this  is  normal  hearing. 

A  Member:  What  would  your  hearing  be? 

Mr.  Clark:  Sixty-seven  in  one  year,  and  seventy-three  in  another; 
on  that  scale.    That  is  a  little  below  the  normal  hearing,  I  think. 

A  Member:  I  would  ask  Professor  Clark  to  explain  the  use  of  the 
audiometer.    . 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark:  I  am  one  of  the  coinventors  of  the  audiometer. 
The  audiometer,  as  we  use  it  here,  is  a  modification  of  Hughes'  sono- 
meter, or  sound  measure.  We  wished  to  make  a  perfectly  accurate 
instrument  to  measure  hearing.  There  has  never  been  such  a  one 
made,  and  this  is  the  nearest  approach  to  it.  At  the  first  meeting  of 
the  committee  appointed  by  the  articulation  convention  two  years 
ago,  my  friend  Noyes  put  me  on  without  my  consent  or  knowledge, 
and  I  joined  it  with  the  express  intention  in  my  mind  of  sitting  on 
my  friend  from  Nebraska,  and  crushing  him  out  of  existence.  That 
was  the  question  that  came  up;  how  shall  we  measure  hearing,  so 
that  when  we  talk  about  it  we  can  say  a  person  hears  so  much,  and 
know  what  we  are  saying.  Mr.  Bell  and  I  were  present  at  that  meet- 
ing, but  Professor  Gordon,  the  other  member  of  the  committee,  was 
not  there.  And  we  spent  some  two  or  three  hours  in  talking  the  mat- 
ter over,  and  the  audiometer  was  the  result.  It  consists,  first  of  an 
ordinary  Symondy's  electro-magnetic  machine;  the  armature  so  ar- 
ranged that  in  each  revolution  it  makes,  it  breaks  the  electrical  cur- 
rent a  great  many  times.  You  are  aware  that  every  time  the  electrical 
current  is  broken  which  passes  through  a  telephone,  the  Bell  receiver 
of  the  telephone,  it  produces  a  tick  in  that  telephone,  and  that  wrhen 
the  breaks  are  very  rapid  they  coalesce  into  a  sound.  There  is  also 
another  law  of  electricity  that  when  two  coils  of  wire  are  near  each 
other,  and  the  current  is  made  in  one,  it  produces  a  current  in  the 
opposite  direction,  in  the  other.  There  is  another  law,  that,  as  those 
coils  are  separated  that  the  produced  or  induced  current  becomes 
weaker  and  weaker  until  you  reach  a  distance  at  which  it  is  practi- 
cally nothing. 

We  worked  upon  those  facts,  and  have  the  instrument.  It  is  a  long 
box  in  which  there  are  two  coils,  one  fastened  at  one  end  of  the  box, 
and  the  other  moves  along  a  scale.  When  these  coils  are  placed  to- 
gether and  a  person  speaks  into  the  box,  the  noise  is  so  intense  that  I 
can  hardly  hold  it  close  to  my  ear  without  its  deafening  me.    As  we 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF   THE   DEAF.  307 

move  it  away  the  sound  becomes  less  and  less  until,  as  I  stated  a  lit- 
tle while  ago,  at  sixty-seven  and  one  half  I  lost  it  one  ear,  and  was 
able  to  hear  it  at  seventy-two  in  the  other,  in  a  silent  room.  I  would 
lose  it  much  before  that  in  a  room  where  there  was  some  noise.  Pro- 
fessor Melville  Bell,  the  old  gentleman,  is  able,  not  only  to  hear  at 
eighty-seven  but  says  he  can  hear  it  much  further,  which,  perhaps, 
will  account  for  the  wonderful  way  in  which  he  has  been  able  to 
analyze  sound.  At  ten  is  about  the  point  where  I  can  bear  to  hold 
the  telephone  closely  against  my  ear,  and  catch  all  of  the  sound. 
Some  fail  there,  and  so  on  down.  Many  persons  can  go  about  fifty- 
five.  This  table  here  is  Dr.  Gordon's  test  at  Kendall  Green.  In  New 
York  it  was  about  the  same  way.  I  have  made  fourteen  hundred 
tests  in  the  last  year;  that  is,  tests  with  fourteen  hundred  different  peo- 
ple. That  includes  the  tests  made  last  year  in  the  New  York  institu- 
tion, also  in  New  Jersey,  and  Illinois,  and  all  of  the  deaf-mutes  that 
I  could  get  in  and  around  New  York,  and  those  that  I  had  in  Ar- 
kansas. 

Mr.  Gillespie:  Will  you  give  us  your  opinion  of  this  matter  before 
you  made  your  tests? 

Mr.  Clark:  I  was  absent  when  the  committee  was  appointed. 
When  Professor  Noyes  suggested  my  name  I  think  I  told  him  that  I 
did  not  want  to  serve.  But  he  told  me  that  I  had  to,  and  I  thought 
I  would.  I  went  in  there  as  a  skeptic,  I  do  not  think  you  can  find 
in  the  whole  profession  to-day  a  more  thorough  and  ardent  believer 
in  aural  teaching  than  I  am.  [Applause.]  I  was  perfectly  aston- 
ished. I  became  so  interested  in  it  that  night  after  night  I  went  to 
the  New  York  institution  after  dark,  waiting  until  the  boys  and  girls 
had  got  through  their  studies;  got  those  boys  into  the  class  or  study- 
room,  and  tested  their  hearing  with  two  or  three  different  sets  of  tests. 
Mr.  Currier  assisted  me  very  greatly  in  that  work.  I  am  also  indebted 
to  him  for  many  very  valuable  hints,  especially  for  what  I  consider 
one  of  the  most  valuable,  and  that  is  this  method  of  gathering  all  of 
the  tubes  of  the  class  into  one  or  two  hands,  putting  the  tube  that 
leads  to  the  deafest  ear  in  the  best  position  in  front  of  the  mouth, 
and  grouping  those  that  can  hear  better  around  it,  and  talking  right 
into  the  whole  thing,  and  letting  them  all  hear  at  one  time.  That  is 
his  idea.  He  gave  me  that  suggestion,  and  I  have  used  it  since,  and 
it  is  a  very  valuable  one.  Perhaps  some  other  teachers  may  have 
discovered  it  independently,  but  Mr.  Currier  taught  me. 

I  did  not  do  any  aural  teaching,  except  in  my  own  class,  during 
articulation  hour  in  New  York.  Mr.  Currier  had  the  pick  of  the 
institution  in  his  aural  training.  But  in  one  class  in  New  York,  a 
class  that,  as  far  as  I  can  remember,  certainly  were  not  picked  out  for 
their  hearing,  a  regular  class  of  girls  in  the  institution,  it  seemed  to  me 
as  though  they  all  could  hear.  The  first  five  or  six  girls  we  picked  out 
one  after  another,  seemed  to  hear  right  through  the  tube,  and  to  hear 
to  a  great  extent.  We  would  say  "oh,"  and  they  would  say  "oh;" 
we  would  say  "ah,"  and  they  would  say  "ah."  Then  we  would  try 
them  on  sentences.  I  would  say,  "Are  you  a  bad  girl?"  They  would 
not  get  that,  but  they  would  give  me  a  sound  of  voice  that  showed 
they  certainly  heard  it.  Any  one  that  did  not  believe  that  some  of 
those  girls  heard  would  not  believe  that  any  one  heard.  We  had 
nearly  four  hundred  cases  in  the  New  York  institution,  and  Professor 
Gordon  had  less  than  one  hundred.  The  percentage  at  the  Illinois 
institution  was  larger  than  this.     The  percentage  at  the  New  Jersey 


308         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

institution  was  a  trifle  smaller  than  this.  In  Arkansas,  which  is  also 
a  part  of  the  total,  the  average  is  larger;  but  it  is  small  here,  so  that 
you  may  take  that  as  a  fair  average.  I  have  not  yet  worked  up  a 
complete  percentage  of  all  the  tests  that  I  have  made,  as  I  have  been 
very  busy  during  the  last  year.  We  have  been  building  and  reorgan- 
izing our  school,  and  I  have  been  ashamed  of  myself  for  the  way  in 
which  I  have  treated  this  aural  training.  I  have  not  done  what  I 
hope  I  will  be  able  to  do  next  year,  by  a  great  deal.  But  we  have  had 
some  most  wonderful  results  in  Arkansas.  I  had  a  boy  come  into  my 
office  one  day  and  come  up  to  me,  and  said  "my  fa,"  and  then  he 
would  go  on  again  in  that  way.  I  listened  just  as  intently  as  I  could, 
but  could  not  make  out  a  word  he  said.  He  had  been  in  school  the 
year  before,  and  had  been  taught  by  signs  for  the  whole  year;  and 
the  result  was  that  he  knew  his  letters  up  to  "f,"  but  was  not  very 
sure  about  "f."  That  is  all  that  he  knew.  His  father  wrote  to  me 
that  he  could  hear  some,  but  that  it  did  not  seem  to  do  him  any  good. 
He  said  that  they  could  holloa  at  him,  and  that  he  thought  he  knew 
his  own  name,  and  they  thought  he  could  pick  that  out  from  other 
signs,  but  that  the  only  words  he  knew  so  as  to  be  understood  were 
"  pa,"  "  ma,"  "  my,"  "  brother,"  and  "  pony."  I  tried  him  upon  "  pony," 
and  he  said  "po."  We  took  that  boy,  and  the  first  trouble  we  had 
with  him  was  when  we  said  anything  to  him  through  the  trumpet,  to 
keep  him  from  starting  in  and  uttering  these  words  for  five  or  ten 
minutes.  We  had  hard  work  to  teach  him  that  he  had  to  hold  up; 
that  we  did  not  want  him  to  say  any  more  than  we  said  to  him.  He 
would  jabber  right  along.  We  worked  with  that  boy  all  this  time, 
and  just  before  I  left  Arkansas,  we  had  a  cook  in  our  kitchen  who 
had  just  come  there,  and  knew  no  signs  at  all,  and  his  assistant  was 
taken  suddenly  sick  Saturday  morning,  and  I  called  to  this  boy  and 
said  to  him,  "Albert,  don't  you  want  to  make  fifty  cents  to-day?"  He 
always  wanted  to  make  fifty  cents.  I  said,  "Go  into  the  kitchen  and 
help  the  cook,  and  I  will  pay  you  fifty  cents  to-night."  I  did  not  say 
anything  to  the  cook  about  it,  except  that  I  told  him  he  would  have 
to  speak  loud  to  the  boy.  At  night  I  went  there  and  said,  "  Well,  does 
the  boy  understand  you?  how  did  you  get  along  with  him?"  "Well," 
he  said,  "some  things  I  would  say  to  him  he  would  seem  to  under- 
stand just  as  good  as  anybody.  Some  things  he  would  repeat  after 
me — he  did  not  seem  to  understand."  You  all  know  what  that  was; 
the  cook  had  gone  outside  of  the  boy's  vocabulary.  And  while  he 
could  imitate  the  sounds,  he  had  no  idea  of  what  was  being  said  to 
him.  That  is  one  case.  That  boy  is  on  the  records  of  the  institution 
as  congenitally  partially  deaf. 

We  have  another  case  that  is  put  on  the  records  of  the  institution 
as  "  totally  deaf,"  but  he  has  a  good  deal  of  hearing.  He  has  been 
taught  through  the  tubes,  and  has  acquired  considerable  develop- 
ment. He  is  a  semi-mute;  lost  his  hearing  at  four  years  old  from 
cerebro-spinal  meningitis.  My  Board  of  Directors  come  up  there  and 
go  into  the  shoe  shop,  and  they  ask  that  boy  questions  and  talk  with 
him  just  as  you  would  talk  to  Professor  Porter,  and  with  the  same 
ease.  He  knows  almost  all  of  the  words,  and  we  have  no  trouble  in 
extending  his  vocabulary.  I  never  knew  him  to  fail  to  get  a  word, 
and  he  really  seems  to  me  to  be  only  hard  of  hearing.  He  does  not 
speak  as  plainly  as  I  would  like  to  have  him. 

Those  two  boys  are  friends,  and  are  together  all  of  the  time,  going 
around  and  talking  to  each  other  through  their  tubes.    They  do  not 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  309 

make  signs  to  each  other.  When  they  meet  other  boys  they  make 
signs.  The  younger  one  does  not  know  signs  very  well.  1  can  go 
into  the  shop  and  say  to  either  one  of  them,  "  Where  is  the  last  pair 
of  shoes  you  made?  He  would  bring  them  to  me  just  as  quickly  as 
any  speaking  boy.  I  can  tell  him,  "Go  down  and  open  the  gate  and 
let  this  gentleman  go  out,  and  close  it  after  him,"  and  he  will  do  it. 
I  talk  with  them  in  the  ordinary  tone  of  voice,  six  or  eight  feet  off. 
Six  feet  away  I  can  talk  to  them  in  a  common,  ordinary  tone  of  voice, 
and  he  will  understand  everything  I  say. 

I  would  say  about  these  audiometer  tests,  that  I  do  not  think  they 
are  at  all  essential.  You  can  do  the  same  thing  in  your  own  institu- 
tion with  a  speaking  tube.  If  you  have  an  audiometer,  you  can  make 
the  test  a  little  quicker,  and  get  an  idea  of  the  extent  of  deafness  a 
little  sooner.  In  making  audiometer  tests  we  should  always  keep  a 
record  of  them.  We  should  keep  a  record  of  tests  made  in  both  ways. 
A  piece  of  stiff  cardboard  is  just  as  good  as  any  audiphone  that  you 
pay  ten  dollars  for,  as  long  as  it  lasts;  and  a  piece  of  hard  millboard 
will  last  about  as  long,  and  be  good  until  it  is  used  up. 

Now,  about  the  audiphone.  I  have  found,  although  I  was  an  unbe- 
liever in  it,  that  about  one  in  a  hundred  of  the  deaf-mutes  who  do 
not  hear  with  a  trumpet,  and  who  are  very  deaf  to  the  audiometer, 
will  hear  with  an  audiphone  in  a  degree  that  will  perfectly  astonisli 
you.  But  there  is  no  more  than  that.  It  seems  to  me  that  it  either 
helps  them  a  great  deal,  or  it  is  of  no  use. 

We  have  a  record  of  the  name  and  age  of  each  of  the  pupils  upon 
whom  these  tests  were  made;  of  record,  also,  as  to  the  color  of  their 
eyes,  color  of  their  hair,  etc.  About  one  in  a  hundred  we  find  that 
the  audiphone  does  help. 

Mr.  Hammond  :  What  particular  bearing  have  the  color  of  the  eyes 
and  hair  here? 

Mr.  Clark  :  That  was  noted  at  Professor  Bell's  request.  He  desired 
to  see  if  we  could  find  any  law  in  it.  I  was  working  in  a  committee 
with  him,  and  that  was  done  at  his  request.  As  to  the  aids  to  hear- 
ing that  we  use,  my  private  opinion  is  that  "The  American  Conico- 
cylindrical"  tube  is  the  instrument  that  we  must  work  with  in  a  very 
large  majority  of  cases.  This  is  a  tube  made  by  every  instrument 
maker,  as  it  has  been  for  the  last  twenty-five  years,  a  tube  which 
tapers  down  towards  the  point,  and  is  not  the  same  size  all  the  way. 
I  have  tried  some  very  large  tubes.  I  do  not  state  this  as  my  convic- 
tion, but  as  my  very  strong  opinion,  that  if  you  get  a  tube  that  is 
larger  than  ordinary,  as  soon  as  you  begin  to  increase  the  size,  what 
you  gain  in  loudness,  you  lose  in  distinctness.  You  may  make  your 
pupils  hear  with  it,  but  you  will  never  be  able  to  teach  them  to  dis- 
tinguish what  they  hear.  They  simply  hear  a  confusion  of  noises. 
The  size  commonly  in  use  seems  to  be  the  nearest  perfect. 

I  must  say  that  I  look  upon  the  double  tube  as  simply  a  nuisance. 
It  is  not  as  powerful  as  the  single  tube.  _ 

Dr.  Sexton,  of  New  York,  a  man  of  national  reputation,  has  a  tube 
that  is  double  at  both  ends,  having  two  mouth-pieces,  and  two  ear- 
pieces, one  for  each  ear.  The  ear-pieces  stay  there  by  themselves,  by 
pressure  which  you  can  regulate.  But  I  cannot  say,  conscientiously , 
that  I  ever  saw  any  particular  benefit  from  it.  If  there  is  any,  I  do 
not  think  it  is  enough  to  pay  for  the  added  machinery  and  cost.  I 
can  buy  a  double  tube  for  ten  dollars,  furnished  at  twenty-five  per 
cent  discount  to  institutions,  and  I  can  buy  two  tubes  with  a  separate 


310  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

ear-piece  for  the  same  price,  and  I  much  prefer  them.  If  gentlemen 
wish  to  experiment,  they  are  welcome  to  spend  ten  dollars.  But  I 
have  got  through  experimenting  with  double  tubes.  I  only  spend 
my  money  for  single  tubes  hereafter. 

Mr.  Hammond:  I  supposed  that  the  advantage  of  the  double  tubes 
was  that  the  scholar  could  hear  his  own  voice. 

Mr.  Clark:  The  children  will  leave  it  in  the  school-room  every 
time.  Some  teachers  may  differ  with  me  about  their  relative  value 
and  usefulness,  but  I  simply  give  you  the  result  of  my  experience. 

I  have  used  a  little  different  method  from'  that  explained  by  Mr. 
Currier  in  his  letter.  I  have  found  in  my  experience  that  the  long 
vowel,  or  those  vowels  which  can  be  prolonged,  as  "oo,"  "aa,"  "ee," 
seem  to  be  recognized  by  the  deaf  when  the  short  vowels  are  not.  So 
I  teach  those  first,  though  there  is  no  objection,  that  I  know  of,  to 
teaching  the  others  first. 

I  agree  with  Mr.  Currier  exactly  in  the  usefulness  of  the  drill  of 
allowing  the  pupils  to  look  at  the  lips  and  hear  through  the  tube  at 
the  same  time  when  you  are  speaking  to  them.  In  fact,  in  teaching 
the  deaf  I  have  always  made  it  a  rule,  if  I  can  teach  a  boy  anything 
in  one  way  easily,  and  it  is  hard  to  teach  him  in  another  way,  I  take 
the  easier  way  every  time,  if  it  teaches  him  as  well. 

If  I  can  take  a  boy  who  is  hard  of  hearing,  but  who  reads  the  lips 
well  and  accurately,  and  teach  him  to  recognize  the  sound  of  a  trum- 
pet easier  than  by  taking  a  new  start,  I  like  to  do  it.  However,  there 
are  some  cases  where  they  read  the  lips  with  so  much  ease,  that  it  is 
necessary  to  conceal  the  lips  from  the  pupil.  And  I  want  to  say  to 
all  teachers,  that  when  they  conceal  the  lips  they  must  also  conceal 
the  whole  face,  for  deaf-mutes  sometimes  read  wonderfully  well  when 
the  lips  are  covered  up.  I  sometimes  stand  behind  the  pupil,  so  that 
he  cannot  see  me.  I  sometimes  put  the  tube  under  my  arm  and  turn 
my  head  completely  away  from  him.  The  teaching  of  our  aural  class 
has  been  done  entirely  by  Miss  Kirkham,  my  articulation  teacher; 
and  I  have  had  but  very  little  to  do  with  her,  beyond  giving  her  my 
advice.  We  have  two  boys  whom  we  teach  through  the  ear  entirely. 
I  have  frequently  asked  them  to  spell  a  word  for  me,  and  they  spell 
it,  naming  the  letters  in  the  old-fashioned  way.  They  never  have 
had  any  elementary  drill  in  articulation.  They  have  been  taught 
articulation,  but  not  by  elements.  And  I  do  not  think  that  I  am 
doing  them  any  harm,  as  I  intend  to  teach  them  from  this  time  until 
they  or  I  leave  that  institution  in  the  way  in  which  they  are  taught 
now.  There  are  several  others  there  whom  1  have  no  doubt  at  the 
end  of  next  year  will  be  as  proficient  as  these  two  were  at  the  end  of 
this  year. 

There  is  no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  as  a  result  of  this  training  the 
hearing  improves.  I  have  heard  many  theories  for  it,  and  have  heard 
it  explained  in  a  great  many  different  ways.  Physicians  and  otolo- 
gists are  very  unwilling  to  admit  that  the  hearing  of  deaf  persons 
improves.  They  say,  for  instance,  "there  is  a  local  tract  in  the  brain 
which  receives  impressions  from  the  ear,  and  in  children  of  defective 
hearing  that  tract  has  lain  dormant  so  long  that  it  does  not  respond 
to  impressions;  and  if  you  make  an  impression  upon  it,  and  continue 
to  make  that  impression  for  some  time,  after  awhile  that  tract  in  the 
brain  will  respond  more  easily  than  it  did  at  first;  but  the  child  does 
not  hear  any  better."    They  always  put  that  last  qualification  in.     It 


OP  AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   <>!•'   Till-:    DBAS.  311 

seems  to  me  that  is  simply  another  way  of  stating  that  the  hearing 
does  improve. 

Take  the  tests  made  by  the  audiometer  in  the  New  York  institution 
in  December,  showing  a  certain  range  of  hearing,  and  then  the  tests 
made  in  the  May  following  in  the  same  children,  and  those  who  had 
received  aural  teaching  from  five  to  ten  minutes  each  day  there  was 
an  improvement  in  one  ear  or  the  other,  and  in  most  cases  there  was  a 
very  decided  improvement,  while  in  those  with  whom  the  audiometer 
had  not  been  used  there  was  no  improvement.  It  will  also  be  re- 
marked that  in  the  cases  where  the  audiometer  was  only  used  in  one 
ear  that  the  improvement  was  confined  to  that  ear.    [Great  applause.] 

Mr.  Gillespie:  We  have  another  convert  we  would  like  to  hear 
from— Miss  Selby,  of  the  Illinois  institution. 

Miss  Selby:  When  Dr.  Gillett  introduced  me  to  my  new  class-room 
last  year,  he  said,  "  We  will  begin  this  work  as  if  we  had  all  faith  in  it." 
I  think  I  never  undertook  any  work  in  which  I  had  less  faith  than  in 
that.  Now  I  am  convinced  by  the  success  of  my  labors.  Dr.  Gillett 
has  given  me  every  help  that  could  be  given,  and  all  of  the  instru- 
ments that  have  been  manufactured  for  the  deaf  have  been  purchased 
for  me,  and  where  they  have  not  been  made  he  has  invented  them. 
The  instrument  which  has  been  the  most  help  to  me  is  the  tube.  I  like 
the  duplex  tube.  In  using  that  I  find  that  the  pupil  can  give  back 
to  me  my  own  words  very  much  more  readily  and  accurately  than 
when  I  use  the  single  tube.  The  inventive  genius  that  Mr.  Gillespie 
was  sighing  for  has  already  been  found.  Dr.  Gillett  invented  such 
an  instrument  in  the  first  part  of  last  year,  and  I  use  no  other  now. 
1  can  speak  with  that  instrument  to  four  pupils  quite  as  easily  as  I 
could  to  one  before. 

I  began  with  my  class  by  giving  them  the  full  sounds,  but  I  found 
after  awhile  that  I  could  begin  just  as  easily  by  giving  them  words, 
and  now  I  usually  begin  with  words.  I  have  this  instrument,  which 
Dr.  Gillett  calls  a  "devil  fish,"  which  has  one  mouth-piece  and  four 
ear-pieces,  and  the  sound  of  the  words  is  heard  by  the  pupils  at  once, 
who  give  it  back  to  me.  Each  pupil  gives  the  word  back  to  me  and 
then  gives  it  to  his  classmate.  And  in  this  way,  after  their  vocabu- 
lary is  extended,  we  have  some  little  conversation.  I  have  thirty 
pupils  in  my  class,  one  third  of  whom,  with  the  use  of  the  instruments 
and  aids  to  the  hearing,  are  placed  on  a  plane  with  hearing  children. 
I  have  no  question  about  it  at  all.  There  are  two  pupils  who  began 
a  short  time  before  Christmas  in  my  class,  and  who  could  then  say 
"papa,"  "mamma,"  "cow."  Now  they  can  converse  with  any  one  in 
words  of  one  or  two  syllables,  and  understand  what  you  say  and  can 

Mr.  Notes:  Have  you  any  pupils  that  are  taught  exclusively  by 
the  aural  method? 

Miss  Selby:  No,  sir.  We  have  one  hour  a  day  in  classes  ot  tour 
or  six.  '  ,.     '  '. 

Mr.  Noyes  [to  Mr.  Gillespie]:  How  many  have  you  taught  exclu- 
sively by  the  aural  method? 

Mr.  Gillespie:  Twelve.  .  . 

Mr.  F.  D.  Clark:  I  have  only  taught  two  exclusively  in  that  way; 
the  others  go  to  the  class  for  an  hour. 

Dr.  Gillett:  Some  of  Miss  Selby's  pupils,  when  they  go  to  their 
classes,  are  communicated  with  mostly  by  oral  speech,  and  receive 
their  communications  from  their  teacher  by  hearing.     I  have  in  mind 


312         *  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

a  lady  whom  T  had  silver  tubes  made  for,  which  fit  within  the  exter- 
nal ear  and  penetrate  the  auditory  meatus,  and  she  is  able  to  converse 
with  great  improvement  in  her  speech. 

Mr.  Weston  Jenkins:  My  observation  in  New  Jersey  with  the 
pupils  of  the  school  of  which  I  am  the  head  has  convinced  me  that 
there  are  a  number  of  my  pupils  who  are  only  hard  of  hearing,  and 
that  hardness  of  hearing,  when  congenital,  unless  aural  methods  are 
used,  involves  all  of  the  consequences  summed  up  under  the  head  of 
deaf-muteism ;  in  short,  makes  the  subject  a  perfect  deaf-mute.  I  will 
ask  Dr.  Peet  how  Miss  Frankie  Horton  is  getting  on?  That  is  the 
young  lady  who  was  under  my  instruction  when  I  was  working  for 
Dr.  Peet.  She  was  a  remarkably  good  articulator  and  lip  reader,  but 
the  possession  on  her  part  of  any  degree  of  hearing  which  could  be 
made  useful  was  not  suspected  by  herself  or  her  teacher  or  any  of  her 
friends. 

Dr.  Peet:  That  young  lady's  lip  reading  is  so  perfect  that  it  is 
possible  for  any  person  to  converse  with  her  upon  any  subject.  And 
since  she  has  received  special  instruction  in  regard  to  hearing,  there 
has  been  a  little  development  of  appreciation  of  vocal  sounds.  So 
that  she  can,  very  much  more  than  formerly,  comprehend  what  is 
said  to  her  through  the  ear  trumpet  alone,  even  when  she  does  not 
see  the  lips. 

Dr.  Gillett:  As  we  all  know,  the  ear  is  a  very  complicated  organ, 
a  perfect  instrument,  so  to  speak.  Musicians  tell  accurately  when  a 
piano  is  in  perfect  tune,  by  striking  a  particular  note  upon  it,  when 
the  same  note  upon  a  violin  or  another  piano  will  respond  to  it. 
Otologists  tell  us  that  in  the  top  of  the  ear  there  are  certain  minute, 
almost  innumerable  papillae.  Certain  of  these  papillae  respond  to 
notes  of  a  certain  pitch,  and  do  not  respond  to  the  notes  of  any  other 
pitch;  so  that  with  one  part  of  the  ear  we  hear  sounds  that  we  desig- 
nate as  having  a  high  pitch,  and  with  another  part  of  the  ear  we  hear 
sounds  that  we  designate  as  of  a  low  pitch,  and  with  others  running 
through  the  scale  intermediately.  If  those  papilla?  that  respond  to 
tones  of  a  high  pitch  are  paralyzed,  which  is  sometimes  the  case,  then 
the  person,  while  he  may  hear  the  other  tones  very  well,  will  hear 
nothing  in  that  pitch.  But  if  those  are  in  a  normal  condition,  and  the 
papillae  which  correspond  to  notes  of  a  low  pitch  are  paralyzed,  then 
he  hears  no  tones  of  a  low  pitch.  So  a  person  may  hear  some  speech 
that  is  spoken  in  a  particular  pitch  of  voice,  and  nothing  else;  and  he 
will  never  guess  the  reason  of  it.  I  think  that  is  a  subject  that  is  very 
well  worthy  of  our  attention.  I  have  in  my  mind  two  sisters,  both  of 
them  semi-deaf.  One  will  hear  the  telephone  bell  quite  distinctly, 
and  the  other  one  will  not.  The  other  one  will  hear  a  pitch  that  is 
very  low,  which  the  first  one  does  not  hear  at  all.  And  yet  there  is 
one  fact  that  is  peculiar  in  reference  to  those  two  ladies,  that  in  the 
street  car  they  will  hear  better  than  anybody  else,  on  all  pitches. 

Mr.  Gillespie:  That  same  fact  is  spoken  of  by  Miss  Plum,  in  her 
experience  in  her  class— that  some  of  the  children  understand  high 
tones  and  some  low.     And  that  is  the  philosophy  of  it. 

Mr.  Elmendorf:  I  will  add  one  more  word  to  Dr.  Gillett's  remarks. 
A  little  girl  that  I  have  been  teaching  for  two  or  three  years  last  past, 
I  have  discovered  can  hear  certain  sounds;  but  at  just  what  pitch  I 
never  discovered  until  some  time  just  before  Christmas,  when,  as  I 
was  playing  on  the  piano,  and  she  was  standing  with  her  hand  upon 
it,  she  said  "  I  hear."     I  tried  to  find  what  she  did  hear;  and  1  struck 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OF  THE   DEAF.  313 

the  different  notes  until  I  struck  B  flat,  which  was  the  note  she  heard. 
I  then  took  my  tuning-fork,  and  found  that  that  was  the  true  sharp 
A  on  the  concert  pitch.  I  then  took  up  a  violin  and  tuned  a  string  of 
the  violin  to  that  exact  pitch,  as  near  as  I  could  judge,  and  sin-  heard 
that.  I  had  no  other  mechanical  instrument.  This  simply  showed 
that  the  peculiar  construction  of  her  ear  was  adjusted  to  that  peculiar 
form  of  vibration,  simply  carrying  out  Dr.  Gillett's  idea. 

Mr.  Weston  Jenkins":  I  would  like  to  ask  Mr.  Wing  if  he  will 
state  the  peculiarity  of  his  own  auditory  apparatus 

Mr.  Wing:  I  have  found  out  that  I  can  hear  in  the  right  ear  only 
sharp  sounds.  On  a  piano  I  can  hear  the  thud  of  the  keys  up  to  a 
certain  point,  and  then  it  changes.  With  my  left  ear  I  can  hear  bell 
sounds  only.  Sleigh  bells  sound  as  if  inclosed  in  a  wooden  box.  I 
have  discovered  that  there  are  some  notes  on  the  piano  that  I  can 
hear  very  plainly,  and  others  not  at  all.  And  there  is  a  marked  dif- 
ference in  the  sounds  of  a  piano  heard  by  a  trumpet  and  with  a  stick 
in  my  teeth.  I  presume  that  one  fourth  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  can 
hear  as  well  as  I  can.  My  hearing  changes.  Some  days  it  is  very 
clear  and  others  very  dull.  Then  again  there  are  some  days  I  can 
hear  certain  sounds,  and  perhaps  the  next  day  I  cannot  hear  them. 
So  that  my  hearing  is  not  to  be  relied  upon. 

One  thing  more  I  would  remark  in  connection  with  the  use  of  my 
single  tube.  When  persons  hold  it  in  a  certain  way  the  sounds  are 
greatly  confused.     If  held  in  another  way  the  sound  is  very  clear. 

Mr.  Mathieson:  We  had  in  our  institution  a  girl  who  was  sent  to 
us  from  away  back  in  the  country,  and  she  was  certified  to  us  as  deaf 
and  dumb.  She  was  certainly  a  dull  pupil,  and  she  could  not  talk 
or  hear.  After  she  had  been  with  us  probably  a  month,  very  sud- 
denly her  hearing  developed  and  she  could  hear  as  well  as  I  could.  I 
made  this  discovery  by  the  application  of  a  little  soap  and  water. 
[Laughter.] 

Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet:  I  do  not  know  that  I  have  anything  to  add. 
I  may  say  that  while  my  own  hearing  is  considered  very  good  in 
regard  to  most  sounds,  that  I  am  deaf  to  certain  sounds.  There  are 
certain,  delicate  metallic  sounds  that-I  fail  to  hear  unless  they  are 
very  near  to  my  ear.  By  the  ordinary  tests  of  an  aurist,  or  the  tick- 
ing of  a  watch,  I  should  be  pronounced  a  pretty  deaf  man.  But  in 
all  matters  of  speech  and  vocal  sounds,  my  hearing  is  considered 
normal. 

I  may  say  that  I  am  very  heartily  in  favor  of  aural  instruction  ot 
those  who  have  some  hearing.  In  Washington  we  have  endeavored 
to  do  what  we  could,  and  the  results  have  been  highly  satisfactory. 
We  have  quite  a  number  of  very  interesting  cases  there.  I  think  it 
is  a  branch  of  instruction  which  should  be  attended  to  for  the  deaf. 

Mr.  Hammond:  We  have  several  cases  in  the  Iowa  institution  that 
we  have  been  teaching  both  orally  and  aurally,  principally  for  the 
last  year,  and  they  have  made  a  good  deal  of  advancement.  They 
were  getting  to  use  language  quite  well  at  the  close  of  the  term,  whereas 
at  the  opening  of  the  term,  though  they  had  some  language  and  hear- 
ing they  were  unable  to  utilize  the  hearing  that  they  had. 

Mr  Walker:  We  have  a  few  in  Kansas  whom  we  are  trying  to 
teach  to  hear  by  the  aural  method.  We  find  a  difficulty  though  in 
getting  teachers  enough  to  supply  the  different  departments  \\  e  can 
only  send  the  pupils  a  short  time  three  or  four  times  a  week  to  that 
teaching.    I  feel  encouraged,  however,  and  hope  that  we  shall  succeed. 


314  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE    ELEVENTH   CONVENTION 

I  shall  endeavor  this  year  to  do  more  in  the  work.  I  believe,  as  all 
do,  that  there  are  a  great  many  who  can  be  benefited  by  these  tubes, 
and  have  their  hearing  developed  sufficiently  to  aid  them  in  gaining 
an  education  in  the  construction  of  English  sentences. 

Mr.  Denison:  I  am  in  very  much  the  same  situation  as  Mr.  Wing 
in  hearing.  I  use  an  ear-piece;  and  would  advise  others  who  may 
follow  my  example  in  using  one  not  to  be  discouraged  if  they  find 
that  sometimes  they  get  no  advantage  from  it.  Last  winter  I  found 
myself  unable  to  hear  with  my  ear-tube  for  two  days;  and  I  was  very 
much  depressed  in  consequence.  But  my  little  boy  told  me  that  he 
had  dropped  a  marble  into  it.     [Laughter.] 

Mr.  Westervelt:  I  had  my  trumpet  that  I  was  testing  the  class 
with,  and  found  that  none  of  them  could  hear  at  all.  Then  I  tested 
some  pupils  that  had  formerly  heard  fairly  well  with  theirs;  and, 
finding  that  they  could  not  hear  at  all,  I  investigated  the  trumpet 
and  I  found  that  it  was  imperfect;  that  it  was  filled  with  japan.  But 
we  have  been  using  our  trumpets  in  our  classes  for  the  past  year,  and 
with  some  pupils  for  the  past  three  years.  We  have  a  number  of 
pupils  who  hear  more  or  less  perfectly;  but  none  whom  we  teach 
altogether  through  hearing,  however.  But  the  hearing  is  made  to 
help  them  in  their  articulation  exercises.  The  teachers  are  each  pro- 
vided with  more  than  one  ear  trumpet,  so  that  the  pupils  can  use  a 
trumpet;  and  they  are  requested  to  use  it  when  they  are  receiving 
special  instruction  in  speech. 

The  Chairman:  The  discussion  of  the  subject  of  Advanced  Lan- 
guage will  be  indefinitely  postponed.  The  papers  that  have  been 
prepared  in  connection  with  this  subject  will  be  published  in  connec- 
tion with  the  proceedings  of  the  Normal  Department.  We  have  a 
poem  that  has  been  prepared  by  Mrs.  Isaac  Louis  Peet,  with  reference 
to  our  gathering  here.  Previous  to  its  reading  it  is  desired  that  Dr. 
Gillett  come  forward  and  occupy  the  chair. 

President  P.  G.  Gillett  thereupon  took  the  chair,  amid  great 
applause. 

The  following  poem  was  then  read  by  Mr.  Wtilkinson,  and  inter- 
preted by  Dr.  Peet: 

THE   EAST  AND   THE   WEST. 

We  take  thy  hand,  O  fair  young  West, 

We  clasp  it  close  as  here  we  stand ; 
Our  old  traditions  of  the  East 

Grow  misty  in  this  wondrous  land. 
And  looking  in  the  radiant  eyes, 
Our  hearts  beat  high  with  glad  surprise! 

Tired  Pilgrims  over  desert  wastes, 

'Neath  burning  suns  we  come  to  thee; 
But  as  the  mountain  torrent  hastes 

Through  lone,  dark  canons  to  the  sea, 
So  here  with  hurrying  step  we  came, 
To  seek  thine  aid,  behold  thy  fame. 

The  frowning  Rockies,  as  we  passed, 

Bent  o'er  us  their  protecting  hand; 
The  sad  Sierras  seemed  to  smile 

Across  on  this  thrice  favored  land, 
To  where,  amid  thy  endless  flowers, 
Shall  love  and  rest  awhile  be  ours. 

O  golden  land !   O  hearts  of  gold ! 

How  often  in  our  dreams 
We  saw  thy  mountains,  pressed  thy  hand, 

And  walked  beside  thv  streams ; 
But  dreams  are  dim  and  visions  naught, 
Beside  the  glory  thou  hast  wrought. 


OP   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OK   THE   DEA  I  315 

We  brought  to  thee  of  all  OUT 

Thou  gavesf  unto  US  thine  <.wn  ; 
And  interchange  of  thought  and  hope 

Have  given  a  clearer,  deeper  tone 
To  Duty's  voice,  to  Toil's  command  : 
And  firmer,  surer  we  stand. 

We  stand  together,  West  and  Il.i-t. 

One  hope,  one  work,  one  aim. 
And  bright  for  us,  or  far  or  near. 

Shall  burn  the  tender  flame 
Of  memories  of  this  union  sweet, 
To  make  our  labor  more  complete. 

Then  once  again  with  fond  regret 

We  clasp  in  ours  thy  hand, 
And  look  farewell  with  misty  eyes 
i  O'er  this  enchanted  land, 

To  where  thy  mountains  grand  in  state 
Keep  guard  around  thy  Golden  Gate. 

[Great  applause.] 

President  Gillett  was  here  presented  with  a  silver  set,  with  the  fol- 
lowing address,  which  was  received  with  long  continued  applause: 

REMARKS   BY   GEORGE   E.   SKINNER. 

Doctor  Gillett:  I  have  the  pleasure,  sir,  as  one  of  the  committee 
appointed  by  the  delegates  to  this  convention  en  route  from  the  East, 
to  express  to  you  their  appreciation  of  your  services  in  making  the 
journey  to  this  place  so  comfortable  and  delightful. 

Your  arduous  labors  extended  to  every  State  in  the  Union  and 
Canada.  The  anxiety  and  requisite  toil  experienced  by  you  without 
remuneration  or  complaint,  has  placed  us  under  great  and  lasting 
obligations. 

As  the  result  of  your  efforts,  I  venture  the  assertion  that  no  excur- 
sion has  ever  crossed  the  continent  better  equipped  and  with  greater 
pleasure  and  satisfaction.  And  allow  me  to  remark  that  a  more 
intelligent,  faithful,  and  worthy  company  of  instructors  cannot  assem- 
ble at  any  point,  east  or  west,  than  those  you  so  successfully  brought 
to  this  beautiful  spot  in  the  Golden  West. 

Your  efforts  have  been  the  means  of  calling  together  a  much  larger 
number  than  would  otherwise  have  participated  in  the  pleasant  and 
instructive  exercises  of  this  convention,  and  will  cement  more  closely 
that  bond  of  sympathy  for  the  work  in  which  Superintendent  and 
teachers  are  engaged,  and  by  comparison  of  views  resulting  from  your 
experience,  all  will  return  to  their  respective  homes  with  a  greater 
desire  to  perform  more  efficiently,  if  possible,  that  glorious  work  of 
ameliorating  the  condition  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  of  our  country. 

We  ask  you,  doctor,  to  accept  from  your  friends  this  case  of  silver 
as  a  slight  expression  of  our  appreciation  of  your  effort  in  our  behalf, 
with  the  desire  that  you  may  long  be  spared  to  continue  in  the  glo- 
rious work  to  which  your  life  has  been  consecrated.  In  your  declin- 
ing years,  when  relieved  from  active  duties,  and  memory  shall  recall 
the  many  pleasant  incidents  of  a  long  and  useful  life,  may  this  occa- 
sion be  one  on  which  you  may  dwell  with  as  delightful  emotions  as 
are  enjoyed  by  those  who  are  permitted  at  this  time  to  express  their 
gratitude  to  you. 

Dr.  Gillett:  My  friends,  I  confess  I  do  not  know  what  to  say. 
The  field  is  a  large  one,  but  I  do  not  feel  that  I  am  competent  to 
respond  without  some  opportunity  of  reflection.    I  was  appealed  to 


316         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

once  by  some  friends  and  neighbors,  who  called  to  see  me  to  know  if 
I  could  not  do  something  to  get  one  Creed  Larch  out  of  the  peniten- 
tiary; and  the  reason  assigned  was  that  his  family  were  a  very  trou- 
blesome family  in  the  community,  and  they  thought  if  they  could 
get  Creed  home  and  out  of  the  penitentiary,  that  perhaps  he  might 
take  care  of  his  troublesome  children.  I  did  what  I  could.  The 
matter  went  to  the  Governor,  and  it  was  not  long  afterwards  when  I 
met  Creed  coming  down  the  street,  and  he  said,  "Doctor,  I  am  very 
much  glad  to  see  you;  you  got  me  out,  and  I  will  return  the  compli- 
ment one  of  these  days."  [Laughter.]  I  hope  that  some  time  I  may 
be  able  to  return  the  compliment,  for  I  assure  you,  my  friends,  that  I 
have  no  sense  of  deserving  any  such  recognition  of  my  humble  ser- 
vices in  your  behalf.  I  did  only  what  I  was  appointed  to  do,  and 
others  did  what  they  were  appointed  to  do. 

I  may  take  occasion  here  to  say  that  the  assembling  of  such  a  body 
of  men  and  women  as  this  is  one  of  the  notable  events,  not  only  in 
our  lifetime,  but  in  our  generation.  There  has  never  been  a  time  in 
the  history  of  the  world  when  a  similar  body  could  have  been  brought 
together.  Take  the  character  of  this  body  that  is  represented  here 
this  evening — the  most  powerful  exponent  of  the  enlightened  Chris- 
tian sentiment  and  fellowship  of  this  age  that  can  be  found  anywhere. 

Has  it  occurred  to  you,  as  Dr.  Gallaudet  remarked  to  me  on  yester- 
day, that  the  education  of  the  deaf  was  the  first  enterprise  for  the 
care  of  the  afflicted  and  unfortunate?  It  was  first  begun  by  our  fore- 
fathers in  the  early  part  of  this  century  as  a  benevolent  enterprise. 
The  old  American  Asylum  at  Hartford  is  the  mother,  not  only  of  all 
of  the  deaf-mute  institutions  of  this  land,  but  it  is  the  mother  of  all 
insane  hospitals,  all  of  the  institutions  for  the  blind,  of  all  institutions 
for  the  feeble-minded,  of  all  the  reformed  schools,  and  of  nearly  all 
those  institutions,  educational  and  charitable,  that  now  characterize 
this  age  of  ours.     [Applause.] 

I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  nowhere  else  on  all  this  globe 
can  such  a  powerful  and  forcible  exponent  of  the  Christian  and  en- 
lightened sentiment  of  this  age  be  found  as  are  brought  together  here 
this  evening. 

Then  I  consider  this  gathering  in  another  aspect.  I  was  talking 
with  a  gentleman  last  night  who  told  me  that  he  crossed  that  terrible 
desert  coming  to  this  country,  when  he  could  have  gone  from  one  side 
of  it  to  the  other,  stepping  from  the  dead  body  of  one  animal  to  an- 
other all  the  way  across.  He  had  known  what  it  was  to  traverse  the 
desert  on  foot  making  his  way  during  the  nights  to  escape  the  savages. 
And  he  is  still  a  young  man.  We  came  here  in  elegant  palace  cars. 
We  came  here  with  the  best  comforts  of  a  home  that  this  world  affords. 
We  came  not  merely  in  days;  but  we  could  count  it  in  hours.  Put 
this  alongside  of  that,  and  who  says  he  is  not  proud  to  say  that  he  is 
an  American  citizen,  and  that  he  lives  in  this  nineteenth  century? 
My  friends,  it  is  not  for  us  to  enjoy  alone;  it  is  also  for  us  to  achieve. 
We  know  not  what  the  vast  opportunities  are  that  are  lying  before 
us,  and  what  achievements  may  yet  be  awaiting  us,  and  how  wisely 
and  well  we  may  lay  the  foundations  for  those  who  follow  us  to 
build  upon.  God  forbid  that  we  should  fritter  away  our  lives;  that 
it  shall  be  said  in  the  future  of  us  that  we  would  never  have  been 
where  we  are  but  for  our  fathers  years  before.  May  we  act  well  the 
part  that  God  has  intrusted  to  us;  and  may  we  ever  be  found  faith- 
ful to  all  the  trusts  that  our  fellow  men  repose  in  us. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEA  I  .  317 

I  thank  you  sincerely  for  these  marks  of  your  confidence  and  favor. 
You  have  been  a  thousand  times  kinder  to  me  than  I  have  deserved. 
I  have  never  had  a  greater  pleasure  in  all  my  life,  my  friends,  than 
in  trying  to  do  as  best  I  might  what  would  contribute  to  your  pleas- 
ure and  happiness,  in  making  this  journey.  And  may  God  grant 
that  our  journey  through  life,  as  we  travel  over  the  deserts  of  life,  as 
we  cross  the  mountains,  as  we  pass  by  the  rivers,  and  as  we  go  over  the 
plains,  and  as  we  are  finally  landed  in  the  Paradise  beyond,  may  God 
grant  that  our  lives  may  be  peaceable,  pleasant,  and  happy.  [Great 
applause.] 

Hon.  Erastus  Brooks:  Mr.  President,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  I 
think  to  add  words  to  those  we  have  heard  to-night,  and  aforetime  at 
this  convention,  would  be  almost  like  gilding  refined  gold,  or  seek- 
ing to  add  perfume  to  the  violet.  I  have  been  deeply  impressed  with 
this  convention.  I  have  attended  a  great  many  assemblies  in  my  life, 
and  for  attention  to  business,  and  for  instruction  in  every  department 
which  belongs  to  the  several  institutions  of  which  we  are  members, 
for  fidelity  to  the  cause  and  causes  which  have  brought  us  together, 
and  for  great  respect  for  the  past  which  has  led  us  to  the  present,  and 
which  gives  prospect  of  a  brighter  future  than  the  present  or  the  past 
can  afford,  it  seems  to  me,  as  my  friend  has  intimated,  that  there  has 
been  no  parallel  to  this  assembly  in  the  conventions  of  the  country. 
The  great  order  which  has  been  observed,  the  respect  and  the  fidelity 
for  the  interests  which  we  represent,  the  peace  and  good  will  which 
has  animated  every  heart  and  has  been  diffused  to  all  around  us,  it 
seems  to  me  make  it  a  memorable  event  in  our  own  personal  lives,  in 
the  associations  which  we  have  formed  for  the  present,  and  in  the 
memories  which  can  never  fade  away. 

It  will  not  be  my  privilege  to  be  present  at  the  close  of  this  conven- 
tion to-morrow  night.  I  shall  therefore  ask  the  privilege  of  express- 
ing what  I  sincerely  feel,  the  warmest  gratitude,  not  only  to  our 
friend,  your  presiding  officer,  who  has  led  us  thus  far  in  safety  and  in 
comfort,  but  to  our  near  and  dear  friends,  whose  home  we  have  visited, 
and  who  has  extended  to  us  such  a. warm  and  cordial  welcome. 
[Great  applause.] 

Speaking  for  myself— and  I  am  sure  I  speak  the  common  sentiment 
of  you  all — the  visit  we  have  made  is  to  us  a  new  revelation  of  our 
country  which  God  seems  to  have  blessed  and  favored  above  all  the 
nations  of  the  earth,  in  that  unity  of  spirit,  which,  more  through 
education  than  from  any  other  cause,  binds  the  brains  and  the  hearts 
of  men  in  a  closeness  and  unity  of  feeling,  and  which  no  power  on 
earth  can  possibly  separate  in  the  future. 

*  Count  that  day  lost,  whose  low  descending  sun 
Sees  at  thy  hand  no  worthy  action  done." 

In  that  spirit,  I  say,  we  may  take  each  other's  hands,  and  feel  bound 
closer  and  closer  together,  each  heart  in  thankfulness  to  God  for  the 
privileges  we  have  been  permitted  to  enjoy  during  the  past  week,  and 
during  our  journey  to  this  very  distant  place  from  our  respective 
homes.  , 

I  am  especially  thankful  that  I  have  come  to  see,  eye  to  eye  and 
face  to  face,  this  Golden  Gate  of  the  Pacific— the  dreamland  of  my 
imagination— of  which  I  have  heard  and  read,  and  now,  in  common 
with  all  of  vou,  enjoy.  And  as  I  looked  out  upon  it  yesterday  in  the 
clear  sunlight,  with  the  clouds  resting  upon  the  sides  of  the  hills,  and 


318         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

the  sun  of  heaven  resting  upon  their  tops,  I  was  led  to  feel  and  ex- 
claim in  regard  to  the  educational  institutions  of  the  country,  and 
especially  in  regard  to  its  commerce: 

"  Bid  harbors  open,  and  public  ways  extend; 
Bid  temples  worthy  of  the  gods  ascend." 

We  have  seen  this,  and  we  have  enjoyed  it  in  presence.  I  think  I 
understand,  Mr.  Chairman,  as  never  before  in  the  history  of  my  own 
life,  and  in  the  history  of  the  country  at  large,  what  the  poet  said 
when  he  put-that  important  question: 

"  What  constitutes  a  State? 

Not  high-raised  battlement,  or  labored  mound, 
Thick  wall,  or  moated  gate; 

Not  cities  proud,  with  spires  and  turrets  crowned; 
Not  bays,  and  broad,  armed  ports, 

Where,  laughing  at  the  storm,  rich  navies  ride; 
Not  starred  and  spangled  courts, 

Where  low-browed  baseness  wafts  perfume  to  pride. 
No; — men,  high-minded  men, 

With  powers  as  far  above  dull  brutes  imbued, 
In  forest,  brake,  or  den, 

As  beasts  excel  cold  rocks  and  brambles  rude; 
Men  who  their  duties  know, 
But  know  their  rights,  and  knowing  dare  maintain." 

And  for  this  revelation  of  what  nature  is  in  the  grand  mountains 
and  rivers  which  we  have  passed;  this  revelation  of  our  common 
motherhood,  in  the  sympathies  felt  one  for  another,  and  for  our  dear 
friends  who  have  given  us  of  their  hearts  and  their  homes,  I  am  sure 
we  feel  a  thankfulness  which  will  continue  in  our  memories  to  the 
latest  day  of  our  lives.     [Applause.] 

The  Chairman  here  announced  that  the  colored  waiters  would 
give  a  musical  entertainment,  after  which  the  convention  adjourned 
until  the  following  day,  at  seven  o'clock  p.  m. 


THURSDAY,  JULY  22,  1886. 

EVENING   SESSION. 

Mr.  Theodore  Lord  delivered  to  the  convention  a  lecture  on  the 
Samoan  Islands,  after  which  the  convention  proceeded  as  follows: 

The  Chairman  (Dr.  Gillett):  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  members  of 
the  convention,  we  have  arrived,  all  too  soon,  at  that  time  that  we 
have  all  been  looking  forward  to  with  dread.  It  seems  almost  impos- 
sible that  already  a  week  and  a  little  more  has  passed  by  since  we 
arrived  at  this  most  beautiful  and  most  hospitable  place;  which  has 
been  to  us  indeed  a  home;  where  we  have  felt  the  freedom  of  home, 
where  we  have  taken  the  liberties  of  home,  and  where  we  have  had 
the  comforts  of  home.  But  we  cannot  tarry  longer.  Duty  calls  us 
to  other  fields  of  labor. 

This  convention  has  been  indeed  a  very  green  and  a  very  bright 
spot  in  the  professional  history,  and  in  the  life  of  every  one  of  us. 
Here  old  attachments  have  been  strengthened;  here  new  acquaint- 
ances have  been  formed;  here  friendships  have  been  contracted  that 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS   OF  THE   DEAF.  319 

neither  time  nor  eternity  will  efface.  And  we  shall,  all  of  us,  as  long 
as  we  live,  look  back  upon  it  with  feelings  of  the  most  intense  satisfac- 
tion and  pleasure,  and  with  the  feeling  thai  it  has  been  a  high  honor 
to  have  been  a  member  of  this  convention;  to  have  met  the  people  of 
this  lovely  town,  and  of  this  enterprising  community;  and  to  have 
enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  the  Superintendent  of  this  institution  and 
his  lady,  and  of  his  assistants,  and  of  the  Trustees  of  the  State;  and  to 
have  received,  as  we  did,  the  welcome  of  his  Excellency  the  Governor, 
the  Chief  Executive  of  the  great  State  of  California.  We  would  gladly 
tarry  longer;  but  we  cannot.  We  shall  not  all  be  assembled  again; 
and  it  will  be  with  feelings  of  no  slight  degree  of  sadness  that  we 
shall  to-night  take  the  hand  of  each  other  to  say  good-bye,  knowing 
that  that  is  only  the  feeble  symbol  of  the  fact  that  we  shall  all  meet 
in  the  great  morning  beyond. 

There  are  duties  that  devolve  upon  us  upon  this  closing  occasion, 
and  I  will  not  occupy  your  time  further,  but  will  give  way  for  the 
business  that  properly  comes  before  us  at  this  time.    [Applause.] 

Prof.  J.  L.  Noyes,  Mr.  Mathieson,  Mr.  Dudley,  Mr.  Gillespie,  Mr. 
Walker,  Mr.  Clark,  Mr.  Argo,  Mr.  Crouter,  and  others  then  read  the 
following  resolutions: 

By  Mr.  Noyes: 

Resolved,  That  the  grateful  thanks  of  this  convention  be  extended  to  the  following  named 
railroad  companies  that  have  combined  to  make  most  pleasant,  profitable,  and  memorable 
the  long  journey  over  hill  and  dale,  over  dust  and  fruitful  field,  necessary  to  reach  the  Pa- 
cific Coast  and  be  conveyed  back  to  our  respective  homes,  viz.:  Chicago  and  Alton  Rail- 
road; Union  Pacific  Railroad;  Denver  and  Rio  Grande  Railroad;  Central  Pacific  Railroad  ; 
Southern  Pacific  Railroad;  Oregon  Railroad  and  Navigation  Company;  Northern  Pacific 
Railroad;  Chicago  and  Northwestern  Railroad;  Chicago,  Milwaukee,  and  St.  Paul  Rail- 
road; Wisconsin  Central  Railroad;  Chicago,  Minneapolis,  and  St.  Paul  Railroad;  Chicago, 
Burlington,  andQuincy,and  Chicago  and  Rock  Island  Railroad;  Illinois  Central  Railroad; 
Louisville  and  Nashville  Railroad;  Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad;  Pennsylvania  Central 
Railroad;  Boston  and  Albany  Railroad;  Grand  Trunk  Railroad  of  Canada;  Chicago  and 
Grand  Trunk  Railroad;  Michigan  Central  Railroad;  Lake  Shore  and  Michigan  Southern 
Railroad;  New  York  Central  Railroad;  Cincinnati,  Indianapolis,  and  St.  Louis  Railroad; 
Queen  and  Crescent  Railroad;  East  Tennessee,  Virginia,  and  Georgia  Railroad;  Missouri 
Pacific  Railroad. 

By  Mr.  Mathieson: 

Resolved,  That  the  grateful  thanks  of  this  convention  are  hereby  expressed  to  the  follow- 
ing associations,  viz.:  The  Transcontinental  Railroad  Association,  the  Missouri  River 
Railroad  Association,  the  Michigan  Railroad  Association,  the  Trunk  Line  Association, 
the  Central  Passenger  Commission,  the  Southern  Passenger  Commission,  for  the  liberal 
concessions  made  to  us  through  the  Chairman  of  our  Transportation  Committee,  render- 
ing possible  a  large  attendance  upon  the  Pacific  Coast  convention. 

By  Mr.  Dudley: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  convention  be  extended  to  the  Pullman  Palace  Car 
Company  for  the  elegant  service  rendered  its  members,  and  especially  for  the  use  of  their 
coaches  during  our  two  days'  stay  at  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  and  four  days'  stay  at  Colorado 
Springs,  and  for  the  pleasing  and  courteous  attention  so  cheerfully  bestowed  by  officials 
en  route. 

By  Mr.  Walker: 

Resolved,  That  this  convention  holds  pleasant  memories  of  their  short  stay  at  Colorado 
Springs,  as  guests  of  the  Colorado  Institution  for  the  Education  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb, 
and  of  the  grand  and  magnificent  scenery  its  members  were  permitted  to  enjoy  for  a  sea- 

Resolved,  further,  That  this  convention  hereby  extend  their  most  cordial  thanks  for  the 
kind  hospitalities  extended  them  by  Superintendent  D.  C.  Dudley  and  wife,  and  the  hon- 
orable Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Colorado  institution. 


320         PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ELEVENTH  CONVENTION 

By  Mr.  J.  A.  Gillespie: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  convention  are  hereby  tendered  to  Mr.  H.  C.  Ham- 
mond, Secretary  of  the  convention,  and  to  his  assistants,  for  a  full  and  accurate  record  of 
our  proceedings. 

By  Mr.  F.D.Clark: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  convention  are  extended  to  the  proprietors  of  the  hotels 
in  Chicago,  Colorado  Springs,  and  Salt  Lake,  and  to  the  eating  houses  en  route  for  hospi- 
talities and  concessions  made  to  the  members. 

By  Mr.  Argo: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  convention  be  tendered  to  the  representatives  of  the 
San  Francisco  and  Oakland  press  for  the  full  and  interesting  dailv  reports  of  our  pro- 
ceedings, and  also  to  Mr.  E.  S.  Belden  for  the  careful  stenographic  *  report  of  the  entire 
proceedings  of  the  convention. 

By  Mr.  W.  0.  Conner,  of  Georgia: 

Feeling  that  the  gentleman  who  was  called  upon  to  preside  over  the  deliberations  of 
this  convention,  has  conferred  honor  upon  it,  by  the  able,  impartial,  and  affable  manner 
in  which  he,  with  his  assistants,  dispatched  its  business,  and  that  we  should  not  let  the 
occasion  pass  without  a  full  and  hearty  expression  of  our  appreciation  of  the  services  ren- 
dered ;  therefore, 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  convention  be  tendered  to  its  able  President  and  his 
assistants,  for  the  satisfactory  manner  in  which  they  have  intelligently  and  impartially 
discharged  their  duties. 

By  Mr.  Crouter: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  convention  be  extended  to  Mr.  Charles  W.  Ely,  of  Mary- 
land, and  the  Executive  Committee  of  the  convention,  for  inaugurating  and  conducting 
to  a  most  successful  end  the  Normal  Department  of  the  convention;  and 

Resolved,  further,  That  this  department  be  continued  at  future  conventions,  in  such 
manner  as  the  wisdom  of  the  Executive  Committee  may  suggest. 

By  Mr.  Hotchkiss: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  convention  be  hereby  tendered  to  the  Board  of  Direct- 
ors of  the  Illinois  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,'  for  their  generous  hospitality  in 
entertaining  the  members  of  the  convention  during  Julv  third  and  fourth,  and  to  the  Su- 
perintendent, Mr.  Philip  G.  Gillett,  and  to  Mrs.  Gillett,  and  Mr.  Charles  P.  Gillett,  and 
their  assistants,  by  whom  that  hospitality  was  dispensed,  for  their  successful  endeavors 
to  make  the  visit  one  of  the  pleasantest  episodes  of  the  whole  meeting. 

The  following  resolution  was  adopted  by  the  deaf  delegates  to  the 
Eleventh  Convention  of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf: 

Whereas,  The  several  Superintendents  and  teachers  have  so  kindly  volunteered  their 
services  as  interpreters  in  behalf  of  the  deaf  portion  of  the  convention,  during  its  long 
and  interesting  session;  be  it 

Resolved,  That  our  heartfelt  thanks  be  tendered  them,  one  and  all. 

DOUGLAS  TILDEN, 
JNO.  B.  HOTCHKISS, 
GEO.  WING, 
JULIA  A.  FOLEY, 
DOSIA  A.  GRIMMETT, 

Committee. 

Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet:  I  have  been  requested  by  my  brother,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  Gallaudet,  of  New  York,  who  has  been  prevented 
by  circumstances  beyond  his  control  from  being  present  this  evening, 
to  express  on  behalf  of  himself  and  his  fellow  laborers  in  the  New 


OF  AMERICAN  INSTRUCTORS  OP  THE  DEAF.  321 

York  Institution  for  Deaf  Mutes  their  great  appreciation  for  hospi- 
tality and  courtesy  which  has  been  extended  to  them  by  the  officers 
of  this  institution,  and  by  the  officers  and  members  of  the  convention 
in  which  they  have  been  permitted  to  join  as  members. 

My  brother  begged  me  to  assure  the  convention  that  his  absence 
was  occasioned  by  circumstances  beyond  his  control,  and  that  be 
would  have  taken  especial  pleasure  in  presenting  this  assurance  of 
his  regard  and  appreciation. 

I  beg  leave  also  to  present  a  preliminary  resolution,  which  I  will 
read.  But  I  may  premise,  Mr.  President,  by  saying,  that  though  they 
necessarily  for  the  purposes  of  the  record  assume  a  certain  formal 
garb,  yet  I  am  sure  that  they  represent  feelings  existing  in  all  our 
hearts  which  will  overstep  and  go  beyond  the  bounds  of  mere  formal 
expression  : 

Whereas,  Through  the  unbounded  hospitality  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Cali- 
fornia Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  and  the  Blind,  and  the  foresight,  energy,  able 
management,  unfailing  courtesy,  and  cheerfulness  of  the  officers  intrusted  with  it- 
pensation,  the  Eleventh  Convention  of  the  Instructors  of  the  Deaf  to-day  closes  its 
sessions  with  the  consciousness  that  this  has  been  in  every  way  the  most  profitable  end 
the  pleasantest  of  all  these  gatherings ;  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  members  of  this  convention,  individually  and  collect- 
ively, and,  through  them,  of  that  vast  body  who  will  profit  by  the  many  lessons  learned 
here,  are  due  and  are  hereby  tendered  to  the  Board  of  Directors  of  this  institution,  to  its 
Principal,  Mr.  Warring  Wilkinson,  and  his  charming  wife  and  daughter,  and  to  each  of 
the  corps  of  instructors  and  officers  of  the  institution,  whose  kindly  grace  and  hearty 
courtesy  have  made  the  sojourn  here  a  dwelling  among  friends. 

[Great  applause.] 

Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet:  I  have  no  desire  to  make  a  lengthy  speech, 
for  in  connection  with  such  resolutions  as  these  perhaps  silence  will 
be  golden.  But  I  wish  to  say,  Mr.  President,  that  I  have  a  long,  long 
speech  to  make  in  support  of  these  resolutions.  I  do  not  intend  to 
make  it  here,  but  I  intend  to  make  it  as  I  go  forward,  living  the  days, 
months,  and  years  that  are  allotted  to  me  on  this  footstool.  And  the 
speech  that  I  shall  make,  telling  of  the  hospitality,  the  unbounded 
hospitality  and  cordial  welcome  that  we  have  received  here  at  this 
institution,  will  go  on,  and  on,  and  on,  and  be  told  to  my  children 
and  to  my  grandchildren,  and  to  my  friends  everywhere,  all  over  the 
world,  as  long  as  I  live.  [Great  applause.]  And  in  that  speech  I  am 
sure  you  will  all  join  me,  so  that  the  speech  which  sustains  these 
resolutions  shall  end  only  with  our  expiring  breath  upon  this  earth. 

The  resolutions  were  then  unanimously  adopted,  amid  great  ap- 
plause. 

Mr.  Wilkinson  [great  applause]:  It  is  simply  impossible,  my  good 
friends,  to  say  what  is  in  my  heart  to  say.  The  kindly  words  which 
have  just  been  uttered  in  your  hearing  and  in  our  presence,  deserve 
a  good  deal  more  than  I  can  say.  This  gathering  has  been  to  me  the 
dream,  the  expectation,  and  the  hope  of  many  years.  I  have  for 
twenty  years,  during  all  my  life  in  California,  hoped  I  should  be  able 
to  entertain  our  friends  upon  this  western  shore.  Ten  or  eleven 
years  ago,  when  we  seemed  to  be  in  something  of  a  condition  to  make 
that  hope  a  realization,  it  went  up  in  flames,  and  I  had  to  begin  again 
the  work  of  reconstruction,  and  to  defer  the  gathering  which  we  have 
so  happily  witnessed  during  the  past  week,  "f  wo  years  ago,  as  a  good 
many  of  you  remember,  I  was  grievously  disappointed;  as  I  had  hoped, 
in  connection  with  our  good  friends  here,  to  have  induced  the  confer- 
21d 


322  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ELEVENTH    CONVENTION 

ence  of  Principals  then  to  come  and  meet  with  us  in  California.  But 
it  seemed  best,  for  reasons  which  you  know,  that  they  should  not 
come.    And  now  I  am  glad  that  they  did  not.     [Applause.] 

It  is  one  of  those  cases  of  which  I  have  had  quite  a  number  of  expe- 
riences, during  my  life,  where  the  thing  that  I  wanted  was  denied  me 
in  order  to  give  me  a  better.  [Applause.]  So  the  loss  of  two  years 
ago  has  resulted  in  this  glorious  gathering  which  we  have  been  hav- 
ing for  the  last  week. 

I  cannot  tell  you  how  much  joy  this  thing  has  brought  to  me.  It 
would  be  foolish  for  me  to  say  it  has  not  been  a  great  deal  of  work. 
It  has  been.  But  it  has  more  than  paid  for  itself;  it  has  more  than 
paid  for  all  the  labor  that  it  has  put  upon  me,  or  that  it  has  put  upon 
my  assistants.  It  has  brought  many  old  friends  here,  friends  of  my 
youth;  friends  of  the  beginning  of  my  labors  in  this  profession.  It 
has  brought  many  of  the  younger  ones  in  the  profession,  whom  it  has 
given  me  an  opportunity  of  seeing  face  to  face,  and  whose  earnestness 
and  intelligent  part  in  this  convention  give  such  abundant  promise 
for  the  future.  The  value  of  meetings  like  this  is  not  all  found  in 
the  papers  read,  or  the  discussions  engaged  in.  There  is  a  kinship 
born  of  this  friendly  communion  that  leads  to  larger  love,  not  only 
of  each  other,  but  of  the  work  in  which  we  are  engaged.  I  never  was 
so  proud  of  my  profession  as  now;  I  never  loved  its  members  as  much 
as  to-night. 

I  wish  also  to  tell  you  how  much  all  my  associates  have  enjoyed 
this  meeting.  I  want  you  to  understand  how  earnestly  and  how  en- 
thusiastically my  Board  of  Directors  have  cooperated  with  me  in  all 
of  the  arrangements  that  have  been  made  for  your  comfort  and  con- 
venience. We  have  not  been  able  to  do  for  you  what  could  have 
been  done  by  my  friend  here,  Dr.  Gillett,  a  man  with  five  hundred 
beds  at  his  disposal;  but  whatever  shortcomings  you  may  have  dis- 
covered, or  whatever  inconvenience  you  may  have  suffered  [voices — 
"There  are  none"],  you  may  be  sure  that  they  have  been  those  only 
which  inexperience  could  not  foresee,  and  those  due  simply  to  the 
inadequate  resources  which  we  have.  We  have  desired  to  make  you 
comfortable;  if  we  have  succeeded  I  think  it  is  largely  due  to  your 
patient  forbearance.    [Great  applause.] 

It  was  a  sad  suggestion  that  our  Chairman  made  at  the  close  of  his 
remarks.  There  is  little  probability  that  so  large  a  number  of  the 
same  individuals  will  ever  assemble  again  this  side  the  Dark  River; 
but  it  is  a  comfort  to  feel  that  we  shall  not  meet  as  strangers  in  the 
Great  Convention  on  the  farther  shore,  but  that  the  memory  of  these 
pleasant  days  shall  abide  with  us  here  and  there.  And  now,  till  we 
clasp  hands  by  the  crystal  sea,  I  bid  you  God  speed,  and  farewell. 
[Applause.] 

Resolutions  of  thanks  to  Dr.  Gillett  and  to  Mr.  Lord  were  then 
adopted  unanimously. 

By  Geo.  L.  Weed: 

Resolved,  That  the  members  of  this  convention  hereby  express  their  sense  of  obligation 
to  Dr.  P.  G.  Gillett  for  his  labors  in  securing  special  facilities  for  their  transportation 
hither,  thus  contributing  largely  to  the  success  of  the  convention ;  making  practicable 
what  otherwise  would  have  been  difficult  for  many,  and  securing  the  welfare  of  all. 

By  Mr.  Moses: 

Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  this  convention  be  tendered  to  Mr.  T.  A.  Lord  for  his 
interesting  lecture  on  the  Samoan  Islands. 


OF   AMERICAN   INSTRUCTORS  OP  THE  DEM  323 

Mr.  Chickering,  of  Washington:  In  order  that  immortality  may 
be  given  to  our  proceedings  and  our  pleasant  memories  of  all  that 
has  been  said  and  done  from  day  to  day,  I  introduce  the  following 
resolution : 

Resolved,  That  Professor  Warring  Wilkinson  and  Mr.  T.  d'Estrella  be  appointed  a  com- 
mittee, to  whom  shall  be  intrusted  the  minutes  and  papers  of  this  convention,  for  publi- 
cation and  distribution. 

This  motion  on  being  put  was  carried  unanimously. 

On  motion  of  Dr.  E.  M.  Gallaudet,  the  time  and  place  of  the  next 
meeting  was  left  to  the  standing  Executive  Committee,  with  power 
to  determine. 

Prayer  was  then  offered  by  Rev.  Dr.  Easton,  of  St.  Mark's  Church, 
Berkeley. 

The  Chairman:  With  great  regret  I  declare  the  Eleventh  Conven- 
tion of  American  Instructors  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  adjourned  sine 
die. 


INDEX 


REMARKS  AND  ADDRESSES:  no* 

Argo,  W.  K 98,99,208,  320 

Barton,  Ellen  L 238,  242 

Black,  Anna  M 59,237,239,240.263,  271 

Booth,  F.  W 51,  53,  86,  94,  97,  98,  99, 100, 106, 107,  108,  125, 144,  248,  251 

Brooks,  Erastus 5,  9,  11,  21,  37,  64,  78, 122,  227,  230,  231,  317 

Brown,  T.  L 83 

Caldwell,  W.  A 145 

Camp,  F.  G 120 

Chickering,  J.  J 219,  223 

Chickering,  J.  W.,  Jr 232 

Clark,  A.  S ,.126,140,234,252,  255 

Clark,  F.  D... 14, 

39,  99, 130,  134, 137, 138,  170,  171,  211,  212,  213,  229,  242,  306,  307,  309,  310,  311,  320 

Conner,  W.  O. 27,48,49,98,113,142.  320 

Cronter,  A.  L.  E ., 

..92,  93,  94, 101,  121,  139,  140,  141,  142,  145,  163,  164,  173,  204,  240,  247,  297,  298,  320 

Denison,  J 230,  314 

D'Estrella,  Theophilus 85,  191 

Dudley,  D.  C 16, 106. 114, 140,  319 

Dutch,  Mary  E 113,  143 

Easton,  Rev.  Dr 333 

Eggleston,  Bessie — --- 190 

Ellis,  Sue - - 142 

Elmendorf,  D.  L - - 

....100, 101, 112,  113, 135, 168,  171, 173, 175,  202,  204,  234,  235,  237,  238,  241,  242,  312 
Ely,  C.  W-  -39, 63, 64, 67, 86, 87, 126. 141, 143, 144,  145,  173, 178, 185, 188, 189, 211, 230,  233 

Fay,  E.  A 83, 177,  223,  224,  233,  241,  282 

Fay,  G.  O - 11, 159,  213,  219,  224,  246,  256 

Fish,  K.  H... - 210,211,237,  239 

Frank,  Henry 56,  137,  188 

Gallagher,  Lu --- 191 

Gallaudet,  E.  M -- 

3, 11,  33, 41,  66,  77,  84, 120, 122,  165, 168,  171,  185,  212,  216,  218,  231,  313,  320,  321,  323 

Gallaudet,  Thomas.  — 17,  36,  37,  38,  63,  82,  86, 115, 135, 168,  209,  294 

Gamage,  G.W.  C & 

Gass,M.T -- 107,  140 

George,  D.  W-— - - - ^ 

Gillespie,  J.  A.. 168,191,298,302,305,307,311,312,  320 

Gillett,R  A -- 10,116, 

146, 168,  175,  191, 197,  201,  208,  213,  224,  239,  240,  258,  274,  296,  311,  312,  314,  315,  318 

Goodall,  G.  B —  143,  243,  246,  247,  248,  249,  250,  251,  252,  258 

Goodwin,  E.  M - - —  1°8 


326  INDEX. 

REMARKS  AND  ADDRESSES—  Continued  :  page. 

Grady,  Theodore 59,88,  258 

Griffith,  A.  J.. 189,190,191,  194 

Hammond,  H.  C. - ..309,310,  313 

Harris,  M.  R * 112,  122,  125 

Hasenstab,  P 121,  274 

Hotchkiss,  J.  B 120,256,  320 

Jameson,  M 194,  196 

Jenkins,  W 78,  86,  108,  112,  115,  135,  139,  185,  211,  312,  313 

Kellogg,  M . 30 

Kennedy,  J.  A 230 

Knight,  P.  S 174 

Krutmeyer,  O 175 

Latham,  W.  H 66,249,  256 

LePrince,  Mme ..  .197,  201,  202 

Lord,  T 318 

Mary  Ann,  Sister. 209 

Mary  Dositheus,  Sister 209 

Marshall,  W.  S .247,  252 

Marwedel,  Mrs 251 

Mathieson,  R. 23,233,238,313,  319 

McDermid,  D.  W 247,250,  252 

McClure,  J.  A.  _. 248,  258 

McFarland,  W.  D 51,83,94,126,  233 

Metcalf,  F.. ..56,248,  251 

Moses,  T.L.... ..77,100,121,142,204,212,  322 

Noyes,  J.  L 16,37,41,43,88,89,  92, 

93,  119,  122,  138,  139,  141,  163,  164, 172,  173,  183, 184,  212,  223,  230,  232,  297,  311,  319 

Patten,  E.. 189,  190 

Peek,  Mary 191 

Peet,  I.  L _... .16,  30,39,43,62,63,64,  85, 

152,  174,  175, 183, 184,  190, 191,  197,  201,  202,  204,  229,  242,  246,  247,  251,  290,  297,  312 

Peet,  M.  T.. 314 

Porter,  Samuel 211,234,  238 

Pratt,  A 141,  145 

Rankin,  I.  P 27 

Redman,  R.  A 22 

Richards,  L.  B 205,  208,  209,  210,  211,  212,  213,  233,  234,  235,  237,  238,  239,  241 

Selby,  Mary 311 

Shrom,  J.  A 87,88 

Simpson,  J 114 

Skinner,  G.  E 29 

Sparrow,  R.  E. 239,  240,  241,  243 

Spruit,  C Ill 

Stoneman,  George 20 

Storrs,  H.  M 32 

Tate,  J.  N 141,240,248,  249 

True,  M.H 211,233,234,  235 

Turner,  Job 84,  122 

Walker,  S.  T 86,  89,  99,  100,  185,  201,  204,  208,  237,  238,  241,  242,  282,  313,  319 

Weed,  G.  L._ 44,48,49,50,  80,87,88,120,  122,126,247,  322 

Westervelt,  Z.  F 54,  55,  56,  57,  58,  59,  119, 126, 135, 137, 139,  145,  314 

White,  Henry 15,187,  248 


INDEX.  327 

REMARKS  AND  ADDRESSES—  Continued  :  page. 

Whitney,  G.  E •_■■ 

Wilkinson,  W 15,  43,  04,  86,  121,  17 

Williams,  Job... 9, 17, 40, 50, 89, 92, 93, 97, 100, 101, 172, 212, 242, 247,  200,  '-'•">  1 ,  l'-'.T.  282;  290 

Wing,  George * 313 

Wright,P 49,87,88,141.  1 1_' 

CALL  OF  CONVENTION 1 

COMMITTEES: 

On  Credentials 6 

On  Order  of  Business 1! 

On  Necrology 12 

On  Permanent  Organization 6 

COMMUNICATIONS: 

J.  C.  Covell. - ---- 9 

J.  R.  Dobyns 7,  305 

Richard  Elliott. 8 

Georgia  Elliott 177 

D.  Greenberger 8 

J.C.Gordon 9,  305 

J.  H.  Johnson 7 

W.  D.Kerr... 258 

Lars  M.  Larsen 8 

F.  D.  Morrison - 7 

E.B.Nelson 8 

H.  B.  Rogers - - 7 

Homer  B.  Sprague - 86 

John  W.  Swiler 7 

N.  F.  Walker - - 9 

ENROLLMENT 18 

ORGANIZATION : 

Permanent -- 10 

Temporary. 5 

PAPERS: 

Chickering,  J.  J.— Physical  Culture - - --  219 

Clark,  F.  D.— Technical  Education . - 213 

Crouter,  A.  L.  E.— The  True  Combined  System  of  Instruction 146 

Currier,  E.  R .— A  Method  of  Aural  Instruction  Suggested  by  Experiments  for 

the' Development  of  Hearing  at  the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Deaf...  302 
Denison,  James— The  Manual  Alphabet  as  a  Part  of  the  Public  School  Course.    78 

Dudley,  D.  C— Is  there  a  Better  Way? 12 

Ely,  Miss  Cornelia  M.— Classes  in  Natural  History  in  a  School  for  the  Deaf...  131 

Fay,  E.  A.— Mortality  and  Vital  Statistics  of  Teachers  of  the  Deaf 67 

Fay,  G.  O.— Our  Institutions  as  Temporary  Homes  for  the  Deaf 224 

Garrett,  Emma— Work  Done  in  the  Pennsylvania  Oral  School 277 

Goodall,  G.  B.— How  to  Teach  History 243 

Grady,  Theodore— How  to  Conduct  a  Scientific  Examination^ 258 

Hasenstab,  P.  J.— The  Importance  of  Supervisors'  Work 274 

Jenkins,  Wreston— Aphasia  in  Relation  to  Deafness 59 

LePrince,  Madame— Technical  Art  Training ■- - 197 

McClure,  J.  A.— Moral  Phase  of  Our  Work ---  117 

Peet,  I.  Lewis— The  Combined  System  of  Education  as  Practiced  in  the  New 

York  Institution  for  the  Instruction  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb 152 

Plum,  Miss  O.  T.— A  Year's  Work 2" 


328  INDEX. 

PAPERS—  Continued  :  r\ < I k. 

Sheridan,  Laura  C  —  Thoughts  from  my  School-room 203 

Tait,  I.  N.— How  Can  We  Secure  Better  Attendance  Upon  Schools  for  the 

Deaf - ---- 34 

Zeigler,  R.  M.— The  Supervisor  dT  Deaf  Boys 271 

REPORTS: 

Committee  on  Order  of  Business - 17 

Executive  Committee - - -   216 

Editor  of  "Annals" 217 

COMMITTEE  ON  NECROLOGY: 

Annie  E.Bond .. 282 

Mme.  Victorine  Boucher 288 

Harriet  E.  Coggeshall 284 

Jennie  Cramer 287 

William  Dewey  Cooke - 293 

Sadie  I.  Cuddy 295 

Pindar  W.  Downey 295 

Kate  A.  Getty - .- 286 

Gideon  E.  Gibson 294 

Joseph  J.  Ijams... 283 

John  R.  Keep - - 287 

Roswell  H.  Kinney... 288 

Albert  E.  Lister 293 

Adolphus  K.Martin 283 

Thomas  Mclntyre  292 

Benjamin  B.  McKinley ...  284 

John  A.  McWhorter 285 

Etta  P.  McWhorter... 295 

John  D.  H.  Stewart 289 

George  A.  Shoaf... 290 

Richard  L.  Storrs 291 

William  B.  Swett... 292 

Cornelia  Trask 286 

Mary  E.  Zeigler 284 

RESOLUTIONS: 

By  W.  K.  Argo 320 

By  A.  L.  E.  Crouter .297,  320 

By  F.D.Clark ..........:....... 320 

By  W.  O.  Conner r _...l_. 320 

By  J.  W.  Chickering,  Jr r_ 323 

By  D.C.  Dudley IOT^.X^.E-E^BIIXI 319 

By  E.  A.  Fay \/*  f OJr"^*Vv^ 177 

By  E.  M.  Gallaudet ..1.......V. ...167,  321 

By  J.  A.  Gillespie <^y  SWifr^^r 320 

By  John  B.  Hotchkiss , ....  320 

By  R.  Mathieson 319 

By  I.  L.Moses 322 

By  J.  L.  Noyes 297,  319 

By  I.  L.  Peet 298 

By  Job  Williams -  290 

By  S.  T.  Walker 319 

By  George  L.  Weed -  322 

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